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Little Known Facts with Ilana Levine

By hosted by actress Ilana Levine and produced by The Hangar Studios, NYC

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How To Be More Chill explores how the extraordinary musical “Be More Chill” arrived on Broadway in Spring 2019 with unprecedented momentum. Hosted by Ilana Levine of Little Known Facts and Sam Maher YesBroadway, the podcast centers around deep-dive interviews with the show’s creators and cast members as they give you the behind-the-scenes scoop on how the show entered the international pop culture zeitgeist on such a massive scale and how the impact of the show’s fandom brought the show to Broadway. Good luck being chill about this podcast - Sam and Ilana definitely weren’t!

Mario Cantone, the celebrated New York stage actor and stand-up comedian gained critical acclaim with his Tony-nominated one-man show Laugh Whore, from its appearance at the Cort Theatre on Broadway to the Showtime Network special. He also starred on Broadway as SAM BYCK in the Tony-winning Assassins,by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman, BUZZ in Terrence McNally's Tony award-winning dramatic comedy, Love! Valor! Compassion! All three of these hit shows were directed by four-time Tony-winner Joe Mantello. His other Broadway credits include GIDGER, in The Violet Hour(original Broadway cast), and STEPHANO (opposite Patrick Stewart), in Shakespeare's The Tempest. Off-Broadway Cantone also originated the roles of TERRY in The Crumple Zone,directed by Jason Moore, and MATT inSteve, for the New Group, directed by Cynthia Nixon. He is currently starring in A Room Of My Own(opposite Ralph Macchio), at the Abingdon Theatre. The feature film from work, from Cantone, include “Quiz Show”, directed by Robert Redford, Sony's animated film, “Surf's Up”, “In Stereo”, “The Aristocrats”, and as Anthony Marentino, in “Sex and the City 1” and “Sex and the City 2”. He can still be seen, HBO’s series “Sex and the City”, in syndication on many television stations. He was a recurring character on ABC’s “Men In Trees”, and has a guest star on VH1’s “Hindsight”. On Comedy Central Cantone's performances have been featured on “The USO Comedy Tour”, “Comics Come Home”, “Chappelle Show”, “Denis Leary Roast”, and “Joan Rivers Roast”. The network was also home to his first solo stand-up special “Comedy Central Presents Mario Cantone.” Cantone got his start hosting the local New York children's show “Steampipe Alley”, where the comic slipped in sly pop culture innuendo that adults could enjoy. His other television credits include appearances on “Late Night with David Letterman”, “Jimmy Fallon”, “Oprah”, “Conan” “Martha Stewart”, “Meredith Viera”, “The Today Show”, and through out it’s 18 year run, multiple appearances, as guest and co-host, on “ABC’s The View”. Cantone has appeared on the stages of Carnegie Hall, Atlantic City’s Borgata, The Golden Nugget, Cearsar’s Palace (Las Vegas), and performing arts centers of Santa Rosa, Peekskill, Scottsdale, Fort Lauderdale, and St. Louis, where he performed his comedy and music show, Mario Cantone Live!

In this episode Ilana sat down with her friend and the producer of the first play Ilana ever did in New York, Tony Award winner - Daryl Roth. Roth is an award-winning theatre producer and President of Daryl Roth Productions. She is honored to hold the singular distinction of producing seven Pulitzer Prize-winning plays: Anna in the Tropics; August: Osage County (2008 Tony Award); Clybourne Park (2012 Tony Award); How I Learned to Drive; Proof (2001 Tony Award); Edward Albee’sThree Tall Women; and Wit. The proud recipient of ten Tony Awards and London’s Olivier Award, highlights of her over 100 award winning productions both on and off Broadway include: The Tony and Olivier Award winning musical Kinky Boots (Broadway, U.S. Tour, London, Toronto, Australia, Korea, Japan); Bea Arthur on Broadway; Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori’s Caroline, or Change; Closer Than Ever; Curtains; Edward Albee’s The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? (2002 Tony Award); The Humans (2016 Tony Award); Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron’s Love, Loss, and What I Wore; Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart (2011 Tony Award); A Raisin in the Sun (2014 Tony Award); Shuffle Along; The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife; Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992; A View from the Bridge (2016 Tony); War Horse (2011 Tony Award); Wiesenthal; The Year of Magical Thinking; and De La Guarda, which ran for 7 years as the inaugural production at the Daryl Roth Theatre, a landmark building in Manhattan’s Union Square. Upcoming Broadway productions include Paula Vogel’s Indecent; Groundhog Day; Hello, Dolly starring Bette Midler; Present Laughter starring Kevin Kline; and Sunset Boulevard starring Glenn Close. Film credits include My Dog: An Unconditional Love Story a documentary exploring the relationships of well-known New Yorkers and their dogs. Ms. Roth is a newly appointed member of the New York City Police Foundation Board of Trustees, a member of the Mayor’s Theater Subdistrict Council, an Honorary Trustee for Lincoln Center Theatre, and was twice included in Crain’s “100 MostInfluential Women in Business.” Recent honors include: The Order of the Golden Sphinx award from The Harvard Hasty Pudding Institute; New York Living Landmarks award; Humanitarian Award from the Women's Division and Albert Einstein College of Medicine; Broadway Association Visionary Leader Award; Family Equality Council Family Award; Live Out Loud Humanitarian Award; and the Lucille Lortel Lifetime Achievement Award. She enjoys supporting a diverse group of charitable and cultural institutions, and is active in LGBTQ rights causes, animal rights, and support for the arts. Ms. Roth is married to real estate developer Steven Roth.

This weeks episode was recorded live at BroadwayCon 2019. In honor of Women's History Month, Ilana is joined by some other members of BroadwayMakers - all women- to share stories of how they took their passion for Broadway and turned it into a successful business.Alisa Hurwitz, PsyD - a/k/a Dr. Drama is in private practice at The Counseling Center of Nashua where she has been a clinical psychologist for the past 7 years, specializing in working with individuals on the autism spectrum, providing structural family therapy, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy and therapy for LGBT individuals. Jennifer Kahn is the founder and CEO of Scenery Bags, which uses retired show backdrops to make fashionable clutches. Part of the proceeds go to the Theater Development Fund to take kids to the theater.Gillian Pensavalle - Gillian is the creator and host of The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast, the first Hamilton podcast to hit the airwaves in January of 2016, which has since earned the title of "The Official Hamilton Podcast" among cast members. Andrea Koehler is the founder of The Coloring Project and Coloring Broadway, she opens the backdoor to self-discovery using coloring as a tool for mindfulness, helping people quiet their inner critic so that they can access their inner “artist”, and sharing show tunes as a way express our emotions when words fail.Amber Kempter - Amber makes custom Funko Pop vinyl figures and pins from popular Broadway musicals, mostly Hamilton characters. Amber runs the Facebook group “Broadway Goes Pop!”

Amy was last seen onstage in Mike Bartlett’s play LOVE LOVE LOVE at the Roundabout theatre directed by Michael Mayer, for which she earned an Obie award. She made her Broadway debut in Wendy Wasserstein’s THE SISTERS ROSENSWEIG. Amy was nominated for two TONY awards as best featured actress for her performances in UNCLE VANYA and A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE. Other theatre credits include DETROIT by Lisa D’Amour’s Detroit, at Playwrights Horizons, Amy is perhaps best known for her acclaimed performance in Ben Affleck’s GONE BABY GONE, for which she was earned an Academy Award nomination.She can be seen in the upcoming films, STRANGE BUT TRUE and LOST GIRLS.Other film credits include: BEAUTIFUL BOY,BIRDMAN, CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE, BRIDGE OF SPIES, GOOSEBUMPS, ABUNDANT ACREAGE AVAILABLE, LOUDER THAN BOMBS, DON VERDEAN, BREATHE IN, CLEAR HISTORY, DEVIL’S KNOT ,WIN WIN, GREEN ZONE, JACK GOES BOATING, CHANGELING; BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU’RE DEAD, CAPOTE, DAN IN REAL LIFE, WAR OF THE WORLDS, and KEANE.Amy’s television work includes “The Office” “In Treatment” and “The Wire.”

Jason Moore most recently directed the Broadway musical The Cher Show, which showcases Cher's life story brought to the stage featuring her beloved chart-topping hits. Starring Stephanie J. Block, Teal Wicks, Micaela Diamond and Jarrod Spector, with costumes by designer Bob Mackie, The Cher Show will began previews in November 2018 at the Neil Simon Theatre prior to the opening night on December 3, 2018.In addition, he’s currently directing Superhero at the Second Stage theatre which is set to begin on January 31, 2019. Starring Kate Baldwin, Kyle Mcarthur and Bryce Pinkham, Superhero is a deeply human new musical about a fractured family, the mysterious stranger in apartment 4-B, and the unexpected hero who just might save the day.Moore’s feature directorial debut, Pitch Perfect, starring Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson and Brittany Snow, was both a critical and commercial success. Written by Kay Cannon, the film premiered in 2012 and follows Beca, a freshman at Barden University, who is cajoled into joining The Bellas, her school's all-girls singing group. Injecting some much needed energy into their repertoire, The Bellas take on their male rivals in a campus competition.Recently, Moore directed Sisters, starring Amy Poehler, Tina Fey and Maya Rudolph, written by Paula Pell. The film was released on December 18, 2015 by Universal Pictures. He will next direct and produce Hair Wars for Fox 2000, a musical project based on a real competition where hair salons face off, and Lionsgate’s Goodbye for Now, an adaptation of the Laurie Frankel novel. Moore is also the creative force behind some of Broadway’s biggest hits. Most recently, he directed Fully Committed, the restaurant-world comedy by Becky Mode starring Jesse Tyler Ferguson, who takes on over 40 characters in this one-man comedy set at Manhattan's number-one restaurant. Additionally, his previous theater projects include Shrek the Musical, for which he earned Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk award nominations; Steel Magnolias; and Avenue Q, for which he received a Tony Award nomination. Furthermore, he directed Jerry Springer: The Opera at Carnegie Hall and the off-Broadway hits Speech and Debate, Avenue Q, Guardians and The Crumple Zone, as well as, Tales of the City, with music by the Scissor Sisters, which premiered at the American Conservatory Theater.Moore’s previous television directorial credits include episodes of “Dawson's Creek,” “Everwood,” “One Tree Hill,” “Brothers and Sisters,” and “Trophy Wife.”Moore divides his time between New York and Los Angeles and received a B.A. in Performance Studies from Northwestern University.

At BroadwayCon 2019, Ilana led a fascinating and illuminating panel on "The Making Of A Cast Recording" with the star of Head Over Heels, Bonnie Milligan and Kurt Deutsch, Senior VP at Warner/ Chappell Music.Bonnie Milligan recently made her broadway debut to critical acclaim starring in Head Over Heels. Previous to HOH, Bonnie was seen playing the original role of Pat in the first national tour of Kinky Boots and off broadway in God Bless You, Mr Rosewater (Encores!), Gigantic (Vineyard), Jasper in Deadland (Prospect). Television credits include the recurring role of Kathryn on Search Party (TBS), Happy! (Sci Fi) and the upcoming new series from Ben Stiller. Twitter: @beltingbonnie Instagram @beltingbons Kurt Deutsch is an actor, director, record producer and film producer. He is the Senior Vice President for Theatrical & Catalog Development for Warner/Chappell Music, and President of Sh-K-Boom Records, a division of Warner Arts Music. Upon his joining Warner/Chappell Music, CEO Jon Platt stated that “Kurt is one of the most prominent figures in the Broadway world, having built Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight into a major force in musical theatre. His exceptional creative instincts, deep relationships in the theatrical community, and extensive experience in encouraging and cultivating composers will be invaluable as we continue to expand our service to songwriters. Today, the theatrical world is in the midst of a renaissance, and Kurt is a leader of this new generation of incredibly gifted songwriters, who are creating brilliant music that transcends genres and cultures."

Harry Hadden-Paton is a British actor renown for his work in the U.K. and recently in the U.S. on stage and screen, some of his credits include; LCT - My Fair Lady (Theatre World Award; Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Drama League nominations). West End includes The Importance of Being Earnest (Ian Charleson Award nom.), Flare Path and The Pride. Off-West End includes She Stoops to Conquer (National Theatre), Posh (Royal Court), The Changeling (Young Vic) and The Prince of Homburg (Donmar Warehouse). Film: The Little Stranger, About Time, The Hollow Crown, The Deep Blue Sea, In the Loop, La Vie en Rose. TV includes Bertie Pelham on “Downton Abbey,” Martin Charteris on “The Crown,” Gaston de Foix on “Versailles” and Hans von Enke on “Wallander.”

Patti Murin is an accomplished stage and television actress. Known for her acclaimed Broadway performances, Murin currently stars as ‘Anna’ in the Broadway production of Disney’s "Frozen." With lyrics written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Frozen is the timeless tale of a fearless princess who sets off on a journey alongside a rugged iceman, his loyal pet reindeer, and a naive snowman to find her estranged sister.Murin made her Broadway debut in 2007’s "Xanadu," in which she played the roles of Euterpe, Siren, and Thetis. Based on the film of the same name, "Xanadu" centers on a Greek muse who is sent to Earth to inspire Californians during the 1980s. Four years later, Murin played the lead of ‘Lysistrata Jones’ in 2011’s "Lysistrata Jones," a modern day adaptation of Aristophanes’ "Lysistrata." Soon after, Patti starred as ‘Glinda’ in the national tour of Broadway’s renowned play "Wicked."In addition to her performances on Broadway, Patti Murin has also starred in a wide range of off-Broadway theatrical productions. Most recently, Murin starred as ‘Linda Mason’ in "The Muny’s Holiday Inn" and Susie in "Lady, Be Good." At The Muny, she has also starred as ‘Roxie Hart’ in "Chicago" and ‘Ariel’ in "The Little Mermaid." In New York, Murin starred as ‘Princess’ in The Public Theater’s production of "Love’s Labour’s Lost." She also played the role of ‘Amber’ in The Cape Playhouse’s production of "Hairspray" and ‘Sharpay Evans’ in The Atlanta Theater of the Stars’ production of "High School Musical." Other theater credits include "Fly By Night," Jane Austen’s "Emma," "Band Geeks," "Give It Up!," "White Noise," "Princesses," "Glimpses of the Moon," "Beauty and the Beast," "Annie Get Your Gun," and "Crazy for You."On the small screen, Murin has starred as recurring character ‘Dr. Nina Shore’ in NBC’s “Chicago Med,” a medical drama set in the ER department of Chicago’s Gaffney Medical Center. She has also starred as ‘Ana’ in USA’s “Royal Pains.” Additionally, Patti Murin played the recurring role of ‘Ellen’ on ABC’s “All My Children.”Murin has also sung the national anthem at numerous sporting events, including a New York Mets game, Philadelphia Soul Football, and an event at Syracuse University.Patti Murin currently resides in New York City.

Jeremy Jordan is a Tony and Grammy-nominated actor and singer. He starred for the past three years on the CBS and CW hit, Supergirl. He can be heard as the voice of ‘Varian' in Disney Channel’s animated series, Tangled, based on the 2010 hit movie. Earlier, he was a series regular on NBC’s musical drama, Smash, and he starred opposite Anna Kendrick in the film adaptation of Jason Robert Brown’s beloved musical, The Last 5 Years. He was honored with the Rising Star award at the Napa Film Festival for his work on that film. Jeremy also starred opposite Queen Latifah and Dolly Parton in Todd Graff's Warner Bros. picture, Joyful Noise. On Broadway, he originated the role of 'Jack Kelly' in Disney's hit musical, Newsies, earning Tony, Grammy and Drama Desk nominations. He reprised the role in 2016 in Disney’s nationwide release of Newsies, taped live onstage at LA’s Pantages Theatre. Jeremy originated the role of 'Clyde Barrow' in Broadway's Bonnie & Clyde, for which he won the Theatre World Award. He got his Broadway start in Rock of Ages, and he then starred as 'Tony' in the most recent Broadway revival of West Side Story.

Mike Birbiglia is a writer, comedian, actor, and director. A contributor to “This American Life” and “The Moth,” he is the author of the New York Times best-selling book “Sleepwalk with Me and Other Painfully True Stories,” which was a finalist for the Thurber Prize For American Humor. He has appeared on the television shows “Orange Is the New Black,” “Broad City” and “Inside Amy Schumer.” He wrote, directed, and starred in the films “Sleepwalk with Me” and “Don’t Think Twice.” His recent solo plays include “My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend,” “Thank God for Jokes,” and “The New One,” which is currently in a 12 week run on Broadway at the Cort Theatre.

Laura Dreyfuss sat down for a live interview with Ilana at the W Hotel in Times Square on a rainy Sunday night and they talked about everything from life after Dear Evan Hansen, their friendship with Tony Award winner Ben Platt and their mutual love of dogs! Dreyfuss just wrapped season one of the highly anticipated Netflix series THE POLITICIAN, created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. In it, she stars opposite Ben Platt, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jessica Lange. Before that, Dreyfuss starred in and originated the lead female role of “Zoe” in the Broadway musical, “Dear Evan Hansen.” Dreyfuss played the role since the musical made its world premiere in 2015 at Arena Stage in Washington D.C. She was nominated for a 2016 Helen Hayes Award for Best Outstanding Supporting Actress, Resident Musical on behalf of that performance. Dreyfuss then performed in the role off-Broadway at Second Stage Theater before its highly anticipated transfer to Broadway’s Music Box Theatre in December 2016. Since its Broadway debut, “Dear Evan Hansen” and the individual performances have been acclaimed by fans and critics alike. Charles Isherwood of The New York Times called Dreyfuss’ performance “sensitive” and “altogether lovely.” The musical won six Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Dreyfuss received a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theatre Album, and a Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Award for Outstanding Musical Performance in a Daytime Program.Previous stage credits for Dreyfuss include the 2010 U.S. National Tour and 2011 Broadway revival of “Hair” understudying the roles of Sheila Franklin and Crissy. She also appeared in the original Broadway production of “Once”, eventually playing the lead female role, Girl, opposite Steve Kazee. “Once” was awarded the Tony Award for Best Musical in 2012.On the small screen, Dreyfuss is best known for portraying Madison McCarthy in the sixth season of the FOX television series, “Glee.” She appeared in 11 episodes and can be heard on the series’ covers of “Chandelier” by Sia, “Home” by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, and “Come Sail Away” by Styx. She can currently be seen in a recurring role on the second season of the Emmy winning Amazon series “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” Dreyfuss holds a BFA in Musical Theater from the Boston Conservatory.

CleanEpisode 124 - Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen, Live from the Atlantic Theater Company

Ilana Levine hosted her Little Known Facts podcast on stage at The Atlantic Theater Company with special guests Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen.Academy Award winner Mary Steenburgen has appeared in over 60 films. She is known for her work in the films Melvin And Howard, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Step Brothers, and television shows “Justified,” “Orange is the New Black” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm”. Mary most recently starred alongside Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda and Candice Bergen in Paramount Pictures’ Book Club. For 4 years, Mary starred alongside Will Forte in FOX’s critically-acclaimed comedy series, “The Last Man on Earth”. Additional television credits include “30 Rock”, “Bored to Death”, and “Blunt Talk”. Additional film credits include Goin’ South, Time After Time, Ragtime, Philadelphia, Back To The Future 3, Cross Creek, Midsummer Night’s Sex Comedy, Miss Firecracker, The Proposal, Elf, Dirty Girl, Four Christmases, The Help, and Last Vegas. Partial theater credits include Holiday, Candida, Marvin’s Room, The Beginning of August, The Exonerated. Mary is also a songwriter and wrote the end credit song for the upcoming feature film Wild Rose.Ted Danson is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor known for an array of exceptional performances, most memorably for his portrayal of Boston bartender Sam Malone on NBC’s multi-award-winning and iconic comedy “Cheers,” which ran for 11 seasons and won three Emmys as Best Comedy Series. Danson currently plays Michael on the hit comedy “The Good Place” opposite Kristen Bell. The show premiered as a critic favorite and ratings hit for NBC. In addition to acting and producing, Danson is an environmental activist, co-founding the American Oceans Campaign (AOC) in 1987 to alert Americans to the life-threatening hazards created by oil spills, off-shore development, toxic wastes, sewage pollution and other ocean abuses. The AOC merged with Oceana in 2001. Oceana works to show citizens how they can participate in protecting and restoring marine resources, and to show Congress that Americans are concerned with these issues.

CleanEpisode 122 - Joe Iconis, Recorded Live at the W Times Square Hotel

Joe Iconis joins Ilana Levine for a live podcast taping at the W Hotel in Times Square, New York. Joe Iconis is a writer and performer. He is a creature of Manhattan and can frequently be spotted banging away on a dirty old piano.As a composer - lyricist - book writer, he has authored the musicals Be More Chill, Broadway Bounty Hunter, Bloodsong of Love, The Black Suits, ReWrite, Theaterworks USA’s The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks and We The People, and the currently in development Hunter S. Thompson Musical and Love In Hate Nation.The original cast recording of his musical phenomenon Be More Chill has over 80 million streams, and his song “Broadway, Here I Come!” was hailed by the New York Times as a new entry in the Great American Songbook.Albums: Be More Chill (Original Cast Recording), Things To Ruin (Original Cast Recording) and The Joe Iconis Rock and Roll Jamboree all available on Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight Records. Joe’s songs appeared on Season 2 of NBC’s “Smash” and his writing has been featured in The New York Times and The Dramatist.His concert act, Joe Iconis and Family, frequently plays The Beechman Theater, 54 Below, and Joe’s Pub. The original cast recording of Joe’s theatrical rock concert Things To Ruin, is out on Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight records.He has been nominated for two Drama Desk Awards, a Lucille Lortel Award, and is the recipient of an Ed Kleban Award, a Jonathan Larson Award, an ASCAP Harold Adamson Lyric Award, a Doris Duke Grant, and a MAC John Wallowitch Songwriting Award.Joe is deliriously inspired by Robert Altman, Dolly Parton, Martin Scorcese, Sardi’s, The Rolling Stones, whiskey, The Muppets, and The Family of artists he frequently surrounds himself with.

Steven Levenson is the Tony Award-winning book writer of Dear Evan Hansen. His plays include If I Forget, The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin, Days of Rage, and The Language of Trees. Honors include the Obie Award, Outer Critics Circle Award, Drama League Award, and the Helen Hayes Award. He worked for three seasons as a writer and producer on Showtime’s Masters of Sex and is a founding member of Colt Coeur and an alumnus of MCC’s Playwrights Coalition and Ars Nova’s Play Group. His work has been published by Dramatists Play Service and Playscripts. A graduate of Brown University, he is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America, Inc. and the WGA. Upcoming projects include the limited series Fosse/Verdon (FX) and the film adaptation of Jonathan Larson’s tick, tick…boom!

A born and bred New Yorker, Jill Kargman, is the creator, writer, producer and star of the scripted comedy “Odd Mom Out” in which Ms. Kargman played a satirical version of herself navigating the hilarity of raising children on the upper east side in NYC.Ms. Kargman attended The Spence School, The Taft School and Yale University.After graduating, and working for magazines, television and movies, Ms. Kargman began writing novels to give her more flexibility to be home with her three children: Sadie, Ivy, and Fletch. She is a New York Times best-selling author of multiple books, and her most recent book, a comedic essay collection, “Sprinkle Glitter on my Grave”, was published in September 2016 by Random House.She made her Café Carlyle debut in January 2017 with her sold out show Stairway to Cabaret ~ singing heavy metal songs ~ cabaret style.Jill hosts the Jill Kargman show on SiriusXM Stars Channel 109.Jill is also a performer with the Upright Citizens Brigade improvisational and sketch comedy group.Jill recently made an appearance in her first Hollywood studio movie, "A Bad Moms Christmas."

Michael Urie currently stars on Broadway in Torch Song Trilogy. He previously starred in Buyer & Cellar playing multiple characters – including Barbra Streisand – in this one-man tour de force. For that role Urie won the Lucille Lortel, Drama Desk, LA Theatre Critics and the Clarence Derwent Awards for Most Promising Male Performer.Before Torch Song Trilogy he was probably best known as the delicious Marc St. James on the award-winning Ugly Betty, the series that introduced him to and made him a favorite of TV audiences everywhere. Following that series, he spent most of his time in critically acclaimed stage productions. He played iconic fashion designer Rudi Gernreich in The Temperamentals, a role he originated in New York where he received the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actor. He followed that run with appearances off-Broadway in the Classic Stage Company’s production of The Cherry Orchard, the revival of Angels in America, and opposite Patti LuPone in Lincoln Center Theater’s world premiere of Shows For Days.But his lifelong dream of Broadway came when he took on the role of Bud Frump in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, opposite Nick Jonas and Beau Bridges. Critics raved that not since Charles Nelson Reilly originated the role had Bud Frump delighted audiences as Urie did. The run ended in time for him to star in the short-lived but much-loved CBS series Partners. SincePartners, he’s appeared on the small screen in Modern Family, The Good Wife, Hot in Cleveland,Younger and Workaholics. He can currently be seen curating and hosting movies on Logo’s Cocktails & Classics.

Bonnie Milligan is currently making her broadway debut to critical acclaim starring in "Head Over Heels." Previous to HOH, Bonnie was seen playing the original role of Pat in the first national tour of "Kinky Boots" and off broadway in "God Bless You, Mr Rosewater: ( Encores!), "Gigantic" (Vineyard ), "Jasper in Deadland" (Prospect). Television credits include the recurring role of Kathryn on "Search Party" ( TBS), "Happy!" ( Sci Fi) and an upcoming new series from Ben Stiller. Twitter: @beltingbonnie Instagram @beltingbons

Many years ago I was hosting a Broadway event to engage and inspire younger voters to get involved in politics. One person after another told me that I needed to meet their friend Al Styron. They were pretty clear that she was someone who knew all the players I would need to make this event a success. They were right. Having been raised in a politically active household as the daughter of author William Styron ( Sophie's Choice) and poet/activist Rose Styron ( Amnesty International), Al did in fact know everyone. What I hadn't been warned about was that she was one of the smartest, funniest and kindest people I would ever know and so unbeknownst to me I was about to meet a lifelong friend and confidante. So here she is. My best friend, best selling author and activist- Alexandra Styron in conversation about her new book "Steal This Country" where she offers us insights into what we can all do to feel like active, impactful and engaged citizens.ALEXANDRA STYRON is the author of Reading My Father and a novel, All The Finest Girls. A graduate of Barnard College and the MFA program at Columbia University, her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Vanity Fair, The Financial Times, and The Wall Street Journal. She currently teaches memoir writing in the MFA program at Hunter College. She lives with her husband and two children in Brooklyn, New York.

In a landscape overflowing with podcasts it is a lovely thing when two hosts feel tremendous mutual admiration and want to interview each other about their love of podcasting and why they "podcast" while maintaining acting careers. Rory O'Malley was a guest on Ilana's podcast and then Ilana was a guest on Rory's podcast and here is their conversation that covers showmances, life in the arts, raising kids, activism, jealousy, show tunes, botox, #beltthevote and more. Go to beltthevote.org

n 2012, Little Known Facts host Ilana Levine got a call that her dear friend Susan was in a horrible car accident. Her car had literally been crushed by a Los Angeles city bus that had driven head on into Susan's car. Her 12 year old daughter who had been in the passenger seat walked out of the car unharmed but Susan was trapped inside. Almost every bone in her body was broken including her neck, she had bleeding on her brain and her lungs had collapsed. One of life's biggest clichés became a horrific reality when Douglas Segal, Susan's husband, showed up at the scene. Following the accident, Doug began sending regular email updates to their circle of friends and family—a list that continued to grow as others heard of the event and were moved by the many emotional and spiritual issues it raised. Those emails became the centerpiece of his memoir "Struck" an intimate and honest chronicle built around these email updates, and is a profound example of how people show up for one another in times of crisis and is an uplifting tribute to love, determination, and how the compassion of community holds the power to heal, serving as an inspiring testament to the resilience of the human spirit when faced with pain and adversity.Doug and Susan share the harrowing story of what it took to recover from a near death accident not just physically but emotionally and spiritually and share many of the life lessons learned along the way.

Nicolette Robinson is an award winning actress and was most recently cast as Jenna , the lead in the Broadway musical, "Waitress." Born and raised in Los Angeles and married to the Hamilton Tony Award winning actor Leslie Odom Jr. , Nicolette opens up about her struggles and triumphs and takes us on an emotional journey that gives listeners an honest and beautiful account of what is is to live the life of an artist.This fall, Robinson made her Broadway debut stepping into the lead role of “Jenna” in the multiple Tony Award nominated musical, WAITRESS. With a book by Jessie Nelson, music by Sara Bareilles, and direction by Diane Paulus, the show has played to full audiences over almost 1,000 performances. On September 4, 2018, Robinson became the first African-American woman and the first mother to play the lead role.Robinson appeared Off-Broadway in the 2015 production of BROOKLYNITE at the Vineyard Theatre, directed by Michael Mayer from a book he co-wrote with Peter Lerman, which earned a 2015 Off Broadway Alliance Award nomination for Best New Musical. She also starred in the new musical, INVISIBLE THREAD, for director Diane Paulus and Second Stage Theatre. Of her performance, Time Out New York wrote that Robinson was “poised and possessed of an ethereal soprano… marvelous.”INVISIBLE THREAD began its life as WITNESS UGANDA – in which Robinson also starred – with book, music, and lyrics by Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews. It was based on the true story of Matthews' humanitarian trips to Uganda, and his work to fund his nonprofit, Uganda Project. The musical premiered in February 2014 at Cambridge's American Repertory Theater before transferring to Off-Broadway.Robinson also co-starred in Barrington Stage Company’s A LITTLE MORE ALIVE, with book, music, and lyrics by Nick Blaemire. In this heartfelt and original folk-pop musical, two estranged brothers reunite at their childhood home after their mother’s funeral. An unexpected revelation distorts their memories and uncovers secrets. Robinson starred as ‘Lizzie’, the hospice worker who’d been caring for the mother, and the Berkshire Eagle called her “luminous.”On television, Robinson co-starred with Ruth Wilson and Dominic West as ‘Jane’ on Showtime’s Golden Globe Award-winning drama series, THE AFFAIR. She has also appeared on HART OF DIXIE, UNFORGETTABLE, PERFECT COUPLES, and COLD CASE, among others.Nicolette received the Princess Grade Award for Theater and is a graduate of the University of California Los Angeles School of Theater, Film, & Television. She is primarily based in Los Angeles, where she resides with her husband, Leslie Odom Jr., and their baby daughter.

Spencer Day is an award winning recording artist. Born in Utah and raised in the Mormon faith his road to fame has been a complicated journey with many bumps along the road. In this live podcast event hosted at The Green Room 42 , Spencer shares intimate details of his life in this moving , inspirational and hilarious conversation with Ilana.

Eduardo Braniff was a hugely successful CEO and creative director of one of the largest global design firms in the world and then he decided he wanted to change course. That decision has taken him on a journey that includes working with the legendary cellist Yo -Yo Ma to create "Silkroad," a music and learning collective. As an avid supporter of the arts Eduardo serves on the boards of Independent Shakespeare Company and other organizations that focus on the arts and the LGBTQ community. He is the founder and editor in chief of @MensVows a digital magazine dedicated to supporting men who marry. Eduardo is also a certified life coach working with creatives to help them understand that they are naturally resourceful , creative and whole and can make their professional dreams a reality.Eduardo A. Braniff is the executive Director of Silkroad, the music and learning collective founded by Yo-Yo Ma. Before joining Silkroad’s staff, he served as a board director of Silkroad and was CEO & Creative Director of the global design firm Imagination. His work has consistently leveraged the value of multiple disciplines towards influencing culture. Additionally, Eduardo is a certified life coach focused on working with the creative community. He lives in Los Angeles where he is an avid supporter of the arts serving on the boards of Independent Shakespeare Company and L.A.N.D. Los Angeles Nomadic Division.

"Be More Chill" stars Joe Iconis, Jennifer Ashley Tepper, George Salazar and Lauren Marcus join Ilana in front of an audience for a live podcast recording on stage at SubCulture in NYC. The conversation was hilarious, secrets were revealed about "Be More Chill" and.... there was a lot of amazing singing!

Jason Alexander, the Tony Award winner and Seinfeld star, sits down with Ilana and opens up about his childhood, his incredible career in the theater and what it meant to play the iconic role of George Constanza. In this intimate conversation these two friends talk about all the ways in which winning the Tony Award at such a young age impacted his life and his career, why he decided to stay in Los Angeles after Seinfeld ended and what he dreams of now.Though best known for his award-winning, nine year stint as the now iconic George Costanza of television’s Seinfeld, Jason Alexander has achieved international recognition for a career noted for its extraordinary diversity. Aside from his performances on stage, screen and television, he has worked extensively as a writer, composer, director, producer and teacher of acting. In between all that he has also become an award-winning magician, a notorious poker player and a respected advocate on social and political issues. For his depiction of “George” on Seinfeld, Jason garnered six Emmy nominations, four Golden Globe nominations, an American Television Award and two American Comedy Awards. He won two Screen Actor Guild Awards as the best actor in a television comedy despite playing a supporting role and in 2012 he was honored to receive the “Julie Harris Award for Lifetime Achievement” from the Actor's Fund.Aside from Seinfeld, Jason has starred and guested in shows as The Grinder, Drunk History, Friends, Two and a Half Men, The New Adventures of Old Christine, Criminal Minds, Monk, Franklin and Bash, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Bob Patterson, Listen Up, Hit the Road, Orville and Young Sheldon. He also starred in the television films of Bye Bye Birdie, Cinderella, A Christmas Carol and The Man Who Saved Xmas. Additionally, his voice has been heard most notably in Duckman, The Cleveland Show, American Dad, Tom and Jerry and Kody Kapow.His many films include: Pretty Woman, Jacob’s Ladder, Love Valor Compassion, Rocky and Bullwinkle, Dunston Checks In, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Shallow Hal. In addition he directed the feature films For Better or Worse and Just Looking. He is also a distinguished television director, overseeing episodes of Seinfeld, Til Death, Everybody Hates Chris, Mike and Molly, Criminal Minds and Franklin and Bash. He won the American Country Music Award for his direction of Brad Paisley's video “Cooler Online.” Mr. Alexander tours the country and the world performing his one-man show, “As Long As You’re Asking, a Conversation with Jason Alexander,” which contains music, comedy and conversation. He can also be seen in his whimsical salute to Broadway musicals with some of the finest symphony orchestras throughout the United States. You can stay in touch with Jason via Twitter (@IJasonAlexander)

Jenn Colella, the award winning actress, made an extraordinary journey from LA comedy club to Tony Nomination. Born in South Carolina her story is a unique journey of self realization at a young age that led her to a lifetime of creativity and activism and success.Jenn Colella stars on Broadway in Come From Away ( Tony nomination.) Previous Broadway credits include If/Then, Chaplin, High Fidelity and Urban Cowboy(Outer Critics Circle Award nomination) and off-Broadway in Beebo Brinker, Lucky Guy, Slut and Closer Than Ever. Her regional work includes Annie Get Your Gun (PCLO); Peter Pan (Sacramento Music Circus); Side Show (Kennedy Center). She's been seen on screen in Feed The Beast, Elementary, All My Children, The Good Wife and Rescue Me.She will star this fall on the television series The Code.

Meet the woman who decided to give up one of the most lauded and glorious careers as an actress because she could no longer sit and watch as politicians derailed the city and state she loves. Meet the candidate willing to go up against Andrew Cuomo.

Here is Part Two of Ilana's conversation with the extraordinary scenic designer, David Korins.David Korins - Broadway credits include - Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, Motown, Annie, Bring It On, Chinglish, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, An Evening with Patti LuPone & Mandy Patinkin, Magic/Bird, Godspell, The Pee-Wee Herman Show, Lombardi, Passing Strange and Bridge and Tunnel. He has also worked extensively both off-Broadway and regionally. David’s opera credits include The Gospel of Mary Magdalene at San Francisco Opera and Oscar and Life is a Dream at the Santa Fe Opera. In 2011, David served as Kanye West’s creative director designing several concerts in the United States and abroad. David has designed installations across the country for festivals including Bonnaroo, Outside Lands and The Great Googa Mooga. He has been the production designer for several feature films, television specials and series on NBC, CBS, HBO, Bravo TV, IFC, Comedy Central, Lifetime and the Game Show Network. David has done commercial work for Target, Samsung, World MasterCard, McDonald’s and Friendly’s. He has received a Drama Desk Award, a Lucille Lortel Award, three Henry Hewes Awards and the 2009 Obie Award for Sustained Excellence in Design.

Here is Part One of Ilana's conversation with the extraordinary scenic designer, David Korins.David Korins - Broadway credits include - Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, Motown, Annie, Bring It On, Chinglish, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, An Evening with Patti LuPone & Mandy Patinkin, Magic/Bird, Godspell, The Pee-Wee Herman Show, Lombardi, Passing Strange and Bridge and Tunnel. He has also worked extensively both off-Broadway and regionally. David’s opera credits include The Gospel of Mary Magdalene at San Francisco Opera and Oscar and Life is a Dream at the Santa Fe Opera. In 2011, David served as Kanye West’s creative director designing several concerts in the United States and abroad. David has designed installations across the country for festivals including Bonnaroo, Outside Lands and The Great Googa Mooga. He has been the production designer for several feature films, television specials and series on NBC, CBS, HBO, Bravo TV, IFC, Comedy Central, Lifetime and the Game Show Network. David has done commercial work for Target, Samsung, World MasterCard, McDonald’s and Friendly’s. He has received a Drama Desk Award, a Lucille Lortel Award, three Henry Hewes Awards and the 2009 Obie Award for Sustained Excellence in Design.

Ilana interviewed JASON ROBERT BROWN live on the stage of City Center after the Encore Series Presentation of his song cycle "Songs for a New World" on the day his latest album "How We React and How We Recover" was released. In this intimate conversation Jason talks about being "adopted " by Hal Prince, his longtime collaboration with Daisy Prince, the joy and pain of winning Tony Awards for shows that had closed quickly and how he wrote the title song for his new album on the morning Donald Trump won the election and more....Jason Robert Brown is the ultimate multi-hyphenate – an equally skilled composer, lyricist, conductor, arranger, orchestrator, director and performer – best known for his dazzling scores to several of the most renowned musicals of his generation, including the generation-defining “The Last Five Years”, his debut song cycle “Songs for a New World”, and the seminal “Parade”, for which he won the 1999 Tony Award for Best Score.JASON ROBERT BROWN has been hailed as “one of Broadway’s smartest and most sophisticated songwriters since Stephen Sondheim” (Philadelphia Inquirer), and his “extraordinary, jubilant theater music” (Chicago Tribune) has been heard all over the world, whether in one of the hundreds of productions of his musicals every year or in his own incendiary live performances. Jason’s score for “The Bridges of Madison County,” a musical adapted with Marsha Norman from the bestselling novel, directed by Bartlett Sher and starring Kelli O’Hara and Steven Pasquale, received two Tony Awards (for Best Score and Orchestrations). “Honeymoon In Vegas,” based on Andrew Bergman’s film, opened on Broadway in 2015 following a triumphant production at Paper Mill Playhouse. His major musicals as composer and lyricist include: “13”, written with Robert Horn and Dan Elish, which began its life in Los Angeles in 2007 and opened on Broadway in 2008; “The Last Five Years”, which was cited as one of Time Magazine’s 10 Best of 2001 and won Drama Desk Awards for Best Music and Best Lyrics; “Parade,” written with Alfred Uhry and directed by Harold Prince, which premiered at Lincoln Center Theatre in 1998, and subsequently won both the Drama Desk and New York Drama Critics’ Circle Awards for Best New Musical, as well as garnering Jason the Tony Award for Original Score; and “Songs for a New World,” a theatrical song cycle directed by Daisy Prince, which played Off-Broadway in 1995, and has since been seen in hundreds of productions around the world.As a soloist or with his band The Caucasian Rhythm Kings, Jason has performed sold-out concerts around the world. His newest collection, “How We React and How We Recover”, was released in June 2018 on Ghostlight Records. His previous solo album, “Wearing Someone Else’s Clothes”, was named one of Amazon.com’s best of 2005, and is available from Sh-K-Boom Records.For the new musical “Prince of Broadway,” a celebration of the career of Harold Prince, Jason was the musical supervisor and arranger. Other recent New York credits as conductor and arranger include “Urban Cowboy the Musical” on Broadway; Oliver Goldstick’s play, “Dinah Was,” directed by David Petrarca, at the Gramercy Theatre and on national tour; and William Finn’s “A New Brain,” directed by Graciela Daniele, at Lincoln Center Theater. Jason has conducted and created arrangements and orchestrations for Liza Minnelli, John Pizzarelli, Tovah Feldshuh, and Laurie Beechman, among many others.Jason studied composition at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y., with Samuel Adler, Christopher Rouse, and Joseph Schwantner. He lives with his wife, composer Georgia Stitt, and their daughters in New York City. Jason is a proud member of the Dramatists Guild and the American Federation of Musicians Local 802. Visit him

Ilana sat down with Donna Murphy, Lesli Margherita, Emily Skeggs and Andrew Keenan Bolger to share war stories about auditioning. This conversation is equal parts hilarious and inspirational. Each of these Broadway stars has a unique perspective on the challenges and joys of putting yourself out there when faced with auditioning -- even though their careers have garnered them awards, accolades and fame. Their generosity in sharing how they approach the process of auditioning is a gift to all artists and also to those of us who love the arts.

George Salazar is best known for originating the role of "Michael Mell" in Be More Chill (coming to the Signature off-Broadway this summer) and for his Drama Desk-nominated performance in off-Broadway's The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical. He was previously seen off-Broadway in Keen Company's Drama Desk-nominated revival of tick, tick... BOOM! and in David Byrne and Fatboy Slim's hit off-Broadway immersive musical, Here Lies Love. George made his Broadway debut singing "Light of the World" in the 2011 Revival of Godspell and toured with the second national company of Spring Awakening prior to that. Regional credits include the world premiere of Joe Iconis and Joe Tracz's Be More Chill, the world premiere of Joe Iconis, Lance Rubin, and Jason "SweetTooth" Williams' Broadway Bounty Hunter, the world premiere of Raging Skillet, and "Chip Tolentino" in ...Putnam County Spelling Bee. He was also a cast member of the 10th Annual CBS Diversity Showcase in Los Angeles.George's TV credits include CBS' BULL, HBO's DIVORCE, & appearances on CBS' LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN, ABC'S THE VIEW, OWN'S THE ROSIE SHOW, and the 2012 TONY AWARDS telecast. He appears on various recordings including GEORGE SALAZAR AND JOE ICONIS: TWO-PLAYER GAME (Ghostlight), BE MORE CHILL (Ghostlight), THE LIGHTNING THIEF (Broadway Records), GODSPELL (Sh-K-Boom), BROOKLYN CRUSH (Broadway Records) and MOMENT BY MOMENT.For more information, follow him on Instagram and Twitter @georgesalazar or visit his website at www.thegeorgesalazar.com!

Tony Award Nominated, Beth Malone, currently stars as “The Angel” in the Tony-award winning play Angels in America, with Andrew Garfield and Nathan Lane.Beth Malone was nominated for her game-changing role of “Alison” in Fun Home. Writing for the New York Times, Ben Brantley singled out Beth’s performance as one that “expertly turns seeming self-effacement into penetrating presence.” Steve Suskin, reviewing for the Huffington Post, called Beth “powerful…the glue that holds the show together.” CBS New York added to the chorus of praise by publishing an entire article, frankly headlined, “Why Beth Malone Should Win the Tony.”Malone grew up on Haystack Road in Castle Rock and got her Equity card at The Country Dinner Playhouse under the loving guidance of Bill McHale. She attended Loretto Heights College in its final year of existence and went on to work at Arvada Center, Denver Center, Boulder’s Dinner Theater and Little Theater of the Rockies at UNC, where she graduated.Malone starred as the titular character in the world premiere of a wholly reimagined version of The Unsinkable Molly Brown, directed by Kathleen Marshall. She recently reprised her role at The MUNY in St. Louis this past July. She originated the role of “June Carter Cash” in Ring of Fire on Broadway, as well as the roles of “Betty Jean” in The Marvelous Wonderettes and Alison in Bingo off-Broadway.Malone’s previous film credits include The Comedian with Robert DeNiro, Hickwith Eddie Redmayne, Twist of Faith and The Interview.Select television credits include a large recurring role on Braindead , a Guest Starring role on Bull and The Good Wife, all for CBS. Comedy Central’sReno 911 and Wanda Does It, along with the Fox pilot Second Nature. Other past television roles include Laying Low, Judging Amy, What’s On andOne Minute Soaps.She is the author and star of the critically acclaimed one-woman show Beth Malone: So Far.

Andrew Keenan-Bolger is an actor, director, author and filmmaker. He recently starred as “Jesse Tuck” in Tuck Everlasting on Broadway (Drama League Award nominee). He created the role of "Crutchie" in the Original Broadway Cast of Newsies (Outer Critics Circle nominee) and in the record-breaking Newsies: The Broadway Musical film. Other Broadway: Mary Poppins, Seussical, Beauty and the Beast, A Christmas Carol. 1st Nat'l Tours: Spelling Bee, How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Mary Poppins, Ragtime. Theater: “Jesse Tuck” in Tuck Everlasting at The Alliance Theater (dir. Casey Nicholaw), Ever After at Papermill Playhouse (dir. Kathleen Marshall), Family Furniture at The Flea Theater (dir. Thomas Kail). Film: “Billy Frazier” in The Rewrite starring Hugh Grant, To Dust (2018), Marci X, Are You Joking? TV: Three Rivers (ABC Pilot), Nurse Jackie (Showtime), Looking (HBO), Naked Brothers Band (Nickelodeon), One Life to Live. Podcast: Bobby in Marvel's Wolverine: The Long Night. B.F.A. from the University of Michigan. His work as a filmmaker has been profiled in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, The Associated Press and New York Magazine. Director of the award-winning short films Sign and The Ceiling Fan. Along with collaborator, Kate Wetherhead, he is the co-creator the critically acclaimed webseries, Submissions Only (www.submissionsonly.com) and co-author of the children’s series Jack & Louisa (Penguin Random House).

Matt Bomer is one of Hollywood’s most exciting actors working today.After receiving a BFA Degree from Carnegie Mellon University, Bomer moved to New York where he worked on such acclaimed productions as “Spring Awakening” and “Grey Gardens.” He also starred as Ernest Hemingway in “Villa America” at the Williamstown Theater Festival.Soon after, he got the lead role on the ABC series “Traveler,” produced by Academy Award winners Bruce Cohen and Dan Jinks. He had recurring roles on the Fox series “Tru Calling” and on the NBC series “Chuck” before landing the role of ‘Neal Caffrey’ on USA Network’s “White Collar.” The show, which was one of the highest rated and most critically acclaimed scripted shows on cable television aired for six seasons. He has also guest starred on the hit Fox series “Glee” and on the NBC series “The New Normal."In 2014, Matt starred alongside Mark Ruffalo, Julia Roberts and Jim Parsons in the critically acclaimed screen adaptation of “The Normal Heart” for director Ryan Murphy. For the film, which is based on the Tony Award-winning stage drama of the same name, Matt won a Golden Globe Award and a Critics’ Choice Award and he received an Emmy® Award nomination.In 2015, Matt starred alongside Kathy Bates and Lady Gaga in the critically acclaimed FX series “American Horror Story: Hotel.”Most recently, Matt starred in Amazon’s drama series “The Last Tycoon” alongside Lily Collins, Rosemarie DeWitt and Kelsey Grammer for director Billy Ray.This spring, Matt made his directorial debut with a critically acclaimed episode of “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.”In addition to Matt’s success on the small screen, audiences have seen him star in a variety of feature film roles.Matt’s feature film credits include a starring role in “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning,” “Flight Plan” with Jodie Foster, Andrew Niccol’s “In Time” alongside Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried and the sci-fi dramadey “Space Station 76” with Liv Tyler and Patrick Wilson.In 2015, Matt reteamed with Channing Tatum in “Magic Mike XXL,” the sequel to the 2012 blockbuster film “Magic Mike” in which he starred with Tatum and Matthew McConaughey for director Steven Soderbergh.In 2016, Matt starred opposite Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe in the the action drama “The Nice Guys” for director Shane Black. He also appeared in Antoine Fuqua’s feature “The Magnificent Seven.”Last year, Matt starred in “Walking Out” for directors Alex Smith and Andrew J. Smith. The film, which premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival, is about a teenager who journeys to Montana to hunt big game with his estranged father. Father and son struggle to connect, until a brutal encounter in the heart of the wilderness changes everything.Matt also appeared on stage in the Broadway and Los Angeles readings of Dustin Lance Black’s play “8” where he was joined by such acting luminaries as Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, John C. Reilly and Ellen Barkin.This spring Matt stars in the Broadway production of “The Boys in the Band.” The show opens at the Booth Theatre on May 31.Upcoming, Matt will star in and produce a film based on Hollywood film legend Montgomery Clift. Ira Sachs will direct from the screenplay Ira co-wrote with Mauricio Zacharias.

In celebration of 100 episodes Matthew Broderick joined Ilana for a live podcast event with proceeds from ticket sales going to The Trevor Project. Listeners will feel like they are part of the conversation between old friends catching up.Broderick is a two-time Tony award-winning stage actor and instantly recognizable film presence, Matthew Broderick was most recently on screen in Rules Don’t Apply opposite Warren Beatty, Annette Bening and Lily Collins. He will next star in Look Away alongside Chloe Sevigny and Aidan Turner set for a 2016 release. On stage, Broderick most recently starred in A. R. Gurney’s comedy Sylvia alongside Annaleigh Ashford. Previously he starred in the smash Broadway hit It’s Only a Play opposite his frequent co-star Nathan Lane, as well as the award-winning Broadway run of Nice Work If You Can Get It. Additionally, he starred in the Broadway production of Neil Simon’s The Odd Couple and The Foreigner at the Roundabout Theatre. In 2005, he starred in the feature film version of The Producers, reprising the Tony-nominated performance he gave on Broadway in this smash hit musical.A New York native, he made his professional stage debut opposite his father, James Broderick, at age 17 in the production of On Valentine’s Day. His performance in Harvey Fierstein’s Torch Song Trilogy, won him the Outer Critic’s Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor. Broderick won his first Tony Award for Neil Simon’s Brighton Beach Memoirs, and starred in the play’s sequel, Biloxi Blues. He won his second Tony for his role as J. Pierrepont Finch, in the Broadway revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Broderick also starred in the record-breaking production of The Producers for which he was nominated for a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award for his role as Leo Bloom. Additional theater credits include Night Must Fall and Taller Than a Dwarf. On screen, Broderick starred in the critically acclaimed You Can Count on Me opposite Laura Linney. He also earned considerable acclaim starring opposite Reese Witherspoon in the Independent Spirit Award winning political satire Election, directed by Alexander Payne. Broderick has also starred in such blockbuster movies as Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Glory, War Games, and Disney’s The Lion King, as the adult voice of Simba.Additional credits include Dirty Weekend, Tower Heist, Margaret, Bee Movie, Then She Found Me, Deck the Halls, The Last Shot, The Stepford Wives, Inspector Gadget, Godzilla, Addicted to Love, The Cable Guy, Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle, The Night We Never Met, The Freshman, Family Business and Max Dugan Returns.In addition to his stage, screen and Broadway credits, he has also appeared on Modern Family, 30 Rock, the Showtime film Master Harold…and the Boys and received an Emmy nomination for the TNT production of David Mamet’s A Life in the Theater in which he starred opposite Jack Lemmon.

Robbie Rozelle is a director, writer, performer, producer and graphic designer. He has directed and written or co-written sold-out cabaret shows for Tony Award nominees Melissa Errico and Kate Baldwin, Nikka Graff Lanzarone (Women on the Verge...), RuPaul's Drag Race season 7 contestant Mrs. Kasha Davis and frequent collaborator Jessica Vosk (Elephaba in Wicked), among others. In 2017, he sold out Feinstein's/54 Below twice with his debut cabaret solo act, "Songs From Inside My Locker", which was nominated for a BroadwayWorld Cabaret Award (in addition to nominations for Best Director). He returns to 54 Below this June with his all new show “Bustin’ Out”. As a record producer, he co-produced the Tony Award Season albums for the past two years, and is currently in the studio producing Jessica Vosk’s highly anticipated solo album. For three years, Robbie served as the graphic designer and creative director for Playbill, culminating in the design he is most proud of, the branding of #PlaybillPride, a 30-day initiative of the LGBT movement in the theatre that included a redesign of their historic logo for the month of June 2014. He currently serves as the in-house designer for Grammy-winning record label Broadway Records, where he designed the iconic "What the World Needs Now is Love" in response to Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando. He can often be found tweeting jokes and random musings at @divarobbie.

Robert Nassau is an award winning film and television editor. He is best known for “The Big Sick,” “Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp,” “Wanderlust,” “Funny or Die, “Hello My Name is Doris,” “Wainy Days,” and “Horrible People."

Jesse Tyler Ferguson joined the Little Known Facts host Ilana Levine for a live podcast recording at the W Hotel in Times Square as part of their “Broadway at the W” series. Proceeds went to benefit TieTheKnot.org. Jesse is the star of the ABC award winning series Modern Family now going into its 10th season and is currently starring in Log Cabin at Playwrights Horizons in New York City.

Abigail Pogrebin starred in the original production of the Stephen Sondheim- Hal Prince musical, "Merrily We Roll Along." Abby was also part of the original "Free To Be You and Me" concept album and television special. Ms. Pogrebin is the author of three books, including “Stars of David,” which was adapted for the Off-Broadway stage, “Showstopper” — an Amazon Kindle Single bestseller that chronicled her teenage adventures in the Broadway flop, “Merrily We Roll Along,” and the most recent deep-dive into the Jewish calendar, called: “My Jewish Year: 18 Holidays, One Wondering Jew,” which received a glowing review in The New York Times and was featured on the Today Show. A former Emmy-nominated producer for Ed Bradley and Mike Wallace at “60 Minutes” and for Bill Moyers at PBS, she has written for numerous publications, has her own live interview series in New York for which she’s interviewed Malcolm Gladwell, Nora Ephron and Charles Blow, and she’s been a guest on CNN, Good Morning America and Face the Nation. Abby lives in New York with her husband and two college kids.

JOE ICONIS - As a composer - lyricist - book writer, he has authored the musicals Be More Chill, Broadway Bounty Hunter, Bloodsong of Love, The Black Suits, ReWrite, Theaterworks USA’s The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks and We The People, and the currently in development Hunter S. Thompson Musical and Love In Hate Nation.The original cast recording of his musical phenomenon Be More Chill has over 80 million streams, and his song “Broadway, Here I Come!” was hailed by the New York Times as a new entry in the Great American Songbook.Albums: Be More Chill (Original Cast Recording), Things To Ruin (Original Cast Recording) and The Joe Iconis Rock and Roll Jamboree all available on Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight Records. Joe’s songs appeared on Season 2 of NBC’s “Smash” and his writing has been featured in The New York Times and The Dramatist.His concert act, Joe Iconis and Family, frequently plays The Beechman Theater, 54 Below, and Joe’s Pub. The original cast recording of Joe’s theatrical rock concert Things To Ruin, is out on Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight records.He has been nominated for two Drama Desk Awards, a Lucille Lortel Award, and is the recipient of an Ed Kleban Award, a Jonathan Larson Award, an ASCAP Harold Adamson Lyric Award, a Doris Duke Grant, and a MAC John Wallowitch Songwriting Award.JENNIFER ASHLEY TEPPER - Jennifer is the Creative and Programming Director at Feinstein’s/54 Below, where she has curated or produced over 3000 shows, including musicals in concert, original solo acts, theatrical reunions, songwriter celebrations, and more. Tepper's leadership at the venue has gained praise from publications including The Huffington Post, The New York Times, Buzzfeed, Playbill, Newsday, the New York Post, and more.As a writer, Tepper has authored three volumes of The Untold Stories of Broadway series, published by Dress Circle. NBC New York has called the books an "inspiring Must-Read". On Broadway, Tepper has worked on The Performers, Godspell, Macbeth, and this season’s The Parisian Woman. In addition, she’s the co-creator of the Bistro Award-winning concert series, If It Only Even Runs A Minute, now in its 8th year.As a public speaker and theatre historian, Tepper has delivered celebrated talks, including at TEDxBroadway. She collaborates often with the group known as Joe Iconis & Family. Tepper was named one of the 10 professionals on Backstage Magazine's "1st Annual Broadway Future Power List", which stated: "Proving herself both a zeitgeist predictor and theatrical historian with her eclectic programming, Tepper is leading the conversation on contemporary musical theatre."

Roma Torre, a recipient of an Emmy® and more than 30 other awards, is celebrating her 25th anniversary at NY1, New York’s popular cable news channel, where she is an anchor and theater critic.Torre began her television career at CBS’ flagship station, New York’s Channel 2, becoming a news writer and producer. Then, with Cablevision’s formation of the country's first 24-hour local news station, News12 Long Island, Torre was among the first reporters hired. At the station, she reported, anchored and hosted a weekly news program. Torre was also its film and theater critic and her reviews were published in the television magazine, Total TV. After five years at News12, Torre returned to New York City in 1992 to join NY1, where she now anchors its "News All Day" and is its theater critic. She previously anchored the station’s award-winning "Inside City Hall," a hard-hitting political and public affairs program described by one critic as "the ‘60 Minutes’ of local television."She followed in the tradition of her mother, the late Marie Torre. A well-known syndicated columnist and amusements editor for The New York Herald Tribune, Marie was involved in a celebrated freedom of the press case. She was the first reporter to gain national attention for going to jail for refusing to identify a news source in a dispute involving CBS and Judy Garland. (It was a 10-day sentence.) But growing up, Roma Torre wanted to be an actress.Born in New York and raised in Pittsburgh, she later graduated from Tufts University. While in Boston, Torre started a theater company with fellow student Ed Lopez. The theater lasted three years but the partnership with Lopez thrived. They married in 1991 and now have two children, Alejandro and Alegra.Torre’s road to Broadway took a detour. After performing in numerous soaps and off-Broadway productions, she traded in the stage lights for the glare of television news cameras. Her theater years are still being put to good use in her role as NY1's theater critic. She regularly contributes to its weekly theater show, "NY1 On Stage." In addition, Torre continues to cover news stories and various special events, ranging from NY1's election night coverage to major parades.She has more than 30 broadcasting awards, including an Emmy for reporting and anchoring coverage of the Avianca plane crash disaster in 1991. Torre and "News All Evening" anchor Lewis Dodley were honored in 1993 by New York Magazine's "Best Of" edition as the best news anchors in New York. Torre was the recipient of the Newswomen’s Club of New York's 2003 Peggy Award for Broadcasting for her review of the Broadway show, Big River. She has co-produced a documentary entitled, “Shout Gladi Gladi” - a story of hope and survival - narrated by Meryl Streep. It profiles a Scottish woman who has dedicated countless hours and her own money to improving the lives of African women and children living in extreme poverty.A colon cancer survivor, Torre is a staunch advocate of early screening and has spoken extensively about the need to raise awareness and the importance of cancer prevention.She is a proud board member of the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA). Founded in 1889, NAWA is the country’s oldest organization that promotes and showcases women in the art world.

Katie Finneran is featured in the third season of Netflix's critically acclaimed drama, Bloodline. Shot in the Florida Keys, Bloodline follows the story of a black sheep son from a respected family who threatens to expose dark secrets from their past. Sibling loyalties are put to the test in this dark, edgy show.Finneran last appeared on Broadway in 2015 It's Only a Play at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre starring Martin Short, Maulik Pancholy, F. Murray Abraham, Matthew Broderick, Stockard Channing, and Micah Stock.In 2012, Katie co-starred on NBC's "The MIchael J. Fox Show" and was called "this season's funniest breakout star" by The Daily Beast. In the fall of 2012, she starred on Broadway as Miss Hannigan in the Tony Nominated revival of "Annie."In 2010, she won a Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Award for her performance in the Broadway revival of "Promises, Promises." She also was awarded the Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Award in 2002 for her performance in the Broadway revival of "Noises Off."Katie was raised in Miami, Florida and graduated from New World School of the Arts. After a year of conservatory training at Carnegie Mellon University she moved to New York to study acting with the legendary Uta Hagen. Her first Broadway show was, "On Borrowed Time," starring and directed by George C. Scott. Other Broadway credits include, "Two Shakespearean Actors," "My Favorite Year," "In the Summer House," "The Heiress," Neil Simon's "Proposals," "The Iceman Cometh," "Mauritius," and as Sally Bowles in the Tony Award winning revival of "Cabaret." In 2009, Finneran was part of the original Off-Broadway cast of "Love, Loss and What I Wore," by Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron. TV credits include, "Sex and the City," "I Hate My Teenage Daughter," "Oz," "Wonderfalls," and the role of Poppy on season 2 of "Frasier." Her film credits include "Night of the Living Dead," "You've Got Mail," "Liberty Heights," "Miss Congeniality 2," "Bewitched," and "Broken Bridges.” In 2011 Finneran appeared as Amy in the New York Philharmonic production of "Company," starring Neil Patrick Harris and Patti Lupone.In the Spring of 2014, Finneran began filming a new Netflix original series. The untitled psychological thriller is written and executive produced by Damages creators Todd A. Kessler, Daniel Zelman and Glenn Kessler. The 13-episode series centers on a close-knit family of four adult siblings whose secrets and scars are revealed when their black sheep brother returns home. The cast includes Sissy Spacek, Sam Shepard, Kyle Chandler, and Norbert Leo Butz.

Michael Ian Black is a multi-media talent who’s starred in numerous films and TV series, written and/or directed two films, is a prolific author and commentator, and regularly tours the country performing his ribald brand of jokes and observations. He most recently starred in TVLand's “The Jim Gaffigan Show” and Comedy Central’s “Another Period.” He also reprised one of his iconic film roles in Netflix’s “Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later,” and previously in "Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp." His third standup comedy special, “Noted Expert,” was released on Epix.Black’s authored 11 books, including the recently released best seller, “A Chilad’s First Book of Trump.” He’s written two well-received memoirs: “Navel Gazing: True Tales of Bodies, Mostly Mine (but also my mom’s, which I know sounds weird)”, and “You're Not Doing It Right: Tales of Marriage, Sex, Death and Other Humiliations.” In 2012, he collaborated with conservative Meghan McCain on “America, You Sexy Bitch: A Love Letter to Freedom.” He’s the author of “My Custom Van (and 50 Other Mind-Blowing Essays That Will Blow Your Mind All Over Your Face),” and seven children's books, including “Cock-a-Doodle-Doo-Bop!,” “Naked”, “Chicken Cheeks,” “The Purple Kangaroo,” “A Pig Parade Is A Terrible Idea” and “I'm Bored.” He also writes book reviews for the New York Times.Previously, Black released two stand-up specials, “Very Famous” and “I Am A Wonderful Man.” He and Tom Cavanagh host the popular podcast, “Mike and Tom Eat Snacks.” He also writes and hosts a podcast with Michael Showalter, "Topics,” and his own interview podcast, “How To Be Amazing.”Sketch comedy fans know Black’s work on “The State,” “Viva Variety,” “Stella” and “Michael and Michael Have Issues” all of which he co-created, wrote and starred in. Other TV credits include quirky bowling alley manager ‘Phil' on the NBC series “Ed,” and his hilarious commentary on cable’s “I Love the...” series. He recently starred in two hit web series that migrated to cable TV: “Burning Love” on E! and “You’re Whole” on Adult Swim.Black’s movie roles include “Slash,” “Smosh: The Movie,” “They Came Together,” “Hell Baby,” “This is 40,” “Wet Hot American Summer,” “Take Me Home Tonight,” “Reno 911!: Miami,” “The Ten” and “The Baxter.”Black wrote and directed the film “Wedding Daze,” starring Jason Biggs and Isla Fisher. He also co-wrote the comedy “Run, Fatboy, Run,” directed by David Schwimmer and starring Simon Pegg, Hank Azaria and Thandie Newton. Originally from Hillsborough, NJ, Black resides with his family in the wilds of Connecticut.

CleanEpisode 92 - Laura Benanti, Recorded Live at the W Hotel Times Square

Tony Award-winner LAURA BENANTI can now be seen in the Samantha Bee and Jason Jones TBS comedy, The Detour. Additional TV credits include Supergirl, Nashville, guest-starring as songbird Sadie Stone; The Good Wife; and Showtime’s Nurse Jackie.Most recently, Laura co-starred along side Amy Schumer and Keegan Michael Key in Steve Martin’s hit Broadway play, Meteor Shower.In 2016, Laura completed her Tony nominated role (and 5th nomination) as Amalia Balash in the hit Broadway Musical, She Loves Me. Laura also received Outer Critics Circle, Drama League and Drama Desk Award nominations for this role.In addition to television work and her critically acclaimed performance as Elsa Schrader in NBC’s The Sound of Music LIVE, Ms. Benanti is a highly celebrated, stage actress who took Broadway by storm at the age of 18.She received a Drama Desk award, Outer Critics Circle Award and a Tony Award Nomination for her starring role in the Broadway production of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown for Lincoln Center where she also starred in the Broadway production of Sarah Ruhl’s In the Next Room or The Vibrator Play. Ms. Benanti earned the 2008 Tony Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical, a Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award for her revelatory portrayal of Gypsy Rose Lee in Gypsy opposite Patti LuPone and directed by Arthur Laurents. Her other Broadway roles include The Wedding Singer, Nine, starring Antonio Banderas, her Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award-nominated performance of Cinderella in Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods and her sultry Tony nominated turn in Swing! Ms. Benanti made her Broadway debut as Maria in The Sound of Music opposite Richard Chamberlain.Other distinguished theater performances include the Public Theater’s production of Christopher Durang’s Why Torture is Wrong and the People Who Love Them, Perdita in The Winter’s Tale at the Williamstown Theatre Festival opposite Kate Burton, Anne in A Little Night Music at the L.A. Opera opposite Victor Garber, Eileen in Wonderful Town opposite Donna Murphy and most recently her portrayal of Rosabella in the Most Happy Fella, both for City Center Encores! Ms. Benanti completed a week-long engagement at the popular New York cabaret club, 54 Below, for which The New York Times hailed her as a “supremely confident” performer whose “bright, full soprano, with its semioperatic heft, can go almost anywhere.” In September 2013, she released her debut album, “In Constant Search of the Right Kind of Attention: Live at 54 Below” on Broadway Records to ecstatic reviews.Laura currently performs her concerts in venues around the country and even recently performed for the President and First Lady of the United States at both the Fords Gala and the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington DC.In 2014, she joined the cast of ABC’s hit series “Nashville” guest-starring as songbird Sadie Stone. Laura also appeared in recurring roles on CBS’s “The Good Wife” and HBO’s “Nurse Jackie.”Laura’s past television credits include a starring role in the NBC series “The Playboy Club” and “Go On” opposite Matthew Perry. She also starred in the F/X original series “Starved”. Ms. Benanti recurred on “Law and Order: SVU,” “Royal Pains,” and “Eli Stone.” and had appearances on “The Big C” and “Elementary”.She currently resides in Manhattan with her husband Patrick and daughter Ella.

Jennifer Ashley Tepper is the Creative and Programming Director at Feinstein’s/54 Below, where she has curated orproduced over 3000 shows, including musicals in concert, original solo acts, theatrical reunions, songwriter celebrations, and more. Tepper's leadership at the venue has gained praise from publications including The Huffington Post, The New York Times, Buzzfeed,Playbill, Newsday, the New York Post, and more.As a writer, Tepper has authored three volumes of The Untold Stories of Broadway series, published by Dress Circle. NBC New York has called the books an "inspiring Must-Read". On Broadway, Tepper has worked on [title of show], The Performers, Godspell, Macbeth, and this season’s The Parisian Woman. In addition, she’s the co-creator of the Bistro Award-winning concert series, If It Only Even Runs A Minute, now in its 8th year. As a public speaker and theatre historian, Tepper has delivered celebrated talks, including at TEDxBroadway. She collaborates often with the group known as Joe Iconis & Family.Tepper was named one of the 10 professionals on Backstage Magazine's "1st Annual Broadway Future Power List", which stated: "Proving herself both a zeitgeist predictor and theatrical historian with her eclectic programming, Tepper is leading the conversation on contemporary musical theatre."

Kevin McCollum has received the Tony Award for Best Musical for "In the Heights" (2008), "Avenue Q" (2004), and "Rent" (1996), which also won the Pulitzer Prize. He is currently represented on Broadway with the Olivier Award-winning "The Play That Goes Wrong." He produced "Something Rotten!" (Broadway, National Tour), "Hand to God" ( Broadway, West End), "Motown: The Musical" (Broadway, West End, and National Tour), "The Drowsy Chaperone" in 2006, which won five Tony Awards, Baz Luhrmann’s production of "Puccini’s La Boheme" in 2002, [title of show] in 2008, the touring and Broadway productions of Irving Berlin’s "White Christmas," the off Broadway hit "De La Guarda," the recent hit revival of "West Side Story," and "Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo." In 1995 Mr. McCollum co-founded the Producing Office, and has since created Alchemation, a theatrical and media producing company committed to new work.Mr. McCollum was trained at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and earned his Master’s degree in film producing from the Peter Stark Program at the University of Southern California. In 1995, he received the Robert Whitehead Award for Outstanding Commercial Theatre Producing.

Rory is currently reigning as King George III in the touring production of the smash hit "Hamilton." It's a role he first played on Broadway for a year where he was the first actor to replace an original cast member in the production. He is best known for starring in the original company of "The Book Of Mormon" on Broadway. He received both Tony and Drama Desk nominations for playing openly closeted Mormon Elder McKinley and performing the show stopper "Turn It Off".Most recently he was seen on stage in back to back Off-Broadway productions at Second Stage's "Nobody Loves You" (Drama Desk nomination) and "Little Miss Sunshine." His broadway debut was in "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" and regionally, he created the role of Richie Cunningham in Garry Marshall’s "Happy Days The Musical" for Goodspeed Opera House and Paper Mill Playhouse. Rory expanded his repertoire of pasty white dudes by butchering the song “Cadillac Car” as lead singer of ‘Dave and the Sweethearts’ in the Paramount Pictures film "Dreamgirls." Most recently, Rory was seen on the CW's "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend." He can also be seen on the small screen in episodes of "Partners" with Kelsey Grammer and Martin Lawrence, "Nurse Jackie," "The Good Wife," "Law and Order: SVU," and "1600 Penn."This year Rory premiered his autobiographical show "Pub Crawl" to a sold out crowd at Joe's Pub in New York City. Pub Crawl is his tale of being raised in an Irish pub in Cleveland by his single mom and all the bar's eclectic patrons. Rory tells his hilarious coming of age story using classic Irish pub songs from The Wolftones, U2, Van Morrison and more with music direction from Tony and Grammy Award winner, Stephen Oremus.Rory is a Co-Founder of Broadway Impact, an organization that mobilizes the theater community to take action on fighting for marriage equality. Along with Jenny Kanelos and Gavin Creel, Rory was there from it's inception and has organized large rallies, phone banks, and theater events; all for the sake of marriage equality. Currently Broadway Impact is producing the play 8, conceived by Rory and edited by Oscar winner Dustin Lance Black. 8 uses the original transcript of the trial that overturned Prop 8 in California and puts it on a stage for theaters all across the country to perform and hold talkbacks. Rory has had the pleasure of performing around the country in the piece with many great actors and activists including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Larry Kramer, Cleve Jones and many more. Currently 8 has been produced in over 400 theaters, including in all 50 states and in 7 countries.Rory lives in Los Angeles with his husband Gerold Schroeder. He is very happy:)

I am back with Part 2 of my interview with actress Cara Buono.Cara Buono currently stars in the hit Netflix show Stranger Things as Karen Wheeler. She was recently in a heavily recurring role as assassin Martine on CBS’s Person of Interest. Cara was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2011 for her critically acclaimed portrayal of Dr. Faye Miller, the smart, Kim Novak-esque psychologist and love interest of Don Draper (Jon Hamm) on AMC’s Mad Men. She played Michael Imperioli’s wife, Kelli Moltisanti, on the final two seasons of The Sopranos (HBO). She is the only actor to have appeared in both critically acclaimed shows. She was a series regular on Third Watch (NBC) playing paramedic Grace Foster (Helen Mirren portrayed her mother). Her notable television appearances include Brothers & Sisters, two critically acclaimed episodes of Law and Order (as well Criminal Intent & SVU), Deep in My Hearta CBS/Hallmark movie in which she played Young Gerry with Anne Bancroft who played Gerry, and was the final fatality on ER. Cara was recently seen in All Saints for Sony. She was featured in 20th Century Fox’s feature Paper Towns. Priorfeature work includes Let Me In directed by Matt Reeves (Cloverfield). She also shot a supporting role in Stephen King’s A Good Marriage with Anthony LaPaglia. She was the female lead in Artie Lange’s Beer League, Edith Banner in Ang Lee’s Hulk, and has played in independent features such as Next Stop Wonderland, Happy Accidents, and River Red (all Sundance premieres),Two Ninaswith Amanda Peet and Ron Livingston (winner Audience Award GenArt Film Festival), Nisha Ganatra’s Chutney Popcorn(winner Audience Award Berlin Film Festival), and Noah Baumbach’s directorial debut Kicking and Screaming(NY Film Festival premiere). She has worked extensively in NY theater at companies including The New Group, Primary Stages and Theater for a New Audience. She has appeared on Broadway in The Rose Tattooopposite Mercedes Ruehl and Anthony LaPaglia directed by Tony Award winner Robert Falls, Some Americans Abroad directed by Roger Michel (Changing Lanes, Notting Hill) and The Tenth Mandirected by Ulu Grosbard both at Lincoln Center. Born and raised in the Bronx. She graduated from Columbia University in 3 years with a double major in English and Political Science. She ran 3 NYC Marathons.

Cara Buono currently stars in the hit Netflix show Stranger Things as Karen Wheeler. She was recently in a heavily recurring role as assassin Martine on CBS’s Person of Interest. Cara was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2011 for her critically acclaimed portrayal of Dr. Faye Miller, the smart, Kim Novak-esque psychologist and love interest of Don Draper (Jon Hamm) on AMC’s Mad Men. She played Michael Imperioli’s wife, Kelli Moltisanti, on the final two seasons of The Sopranos (HBO). She is the only actor to have appeared in both critically acclaimed shows. She was a series regular on Third Watch (NBC) playing paramedic Grace Foster (Helen Mirren portrayed her mother). Her notable television appearances include Brothers & Sisters, two critically acclaimed episodes of Law and Order (as well Criminal Intent & SVU), Deep in My Hearta CBS/Hallmark movie in which she played Young Gerry with Anne Bancroft who played Gerry, and was the final fatality on ER. Cara was recently seen in All Saints for Sony. She was featured in 20th Century Fox’s feature Paper Towns. Priorfeature work includes Let Me In directed by Matt Reeves (Cloverfield). She also shot a supporting role in Stephen King’s A Good Marriage with Anthony LaPaglia. She was the female lead in Artie Lange’s Beer League, Edith Banner in Ang Lee’s Hulk, and has played in independent features such as Next Stop Wonderland, Happy Accidents, and River Red (all Sundance premieres),Two Ninaswith Amanda Peet and Ron Livingston (winner Audience Award GenArt Film Festival), Nisha Ganatra’s Chutney Popcorn(winner Audience Award Berlin Film Festival), and Noah Baumbach’s directorial debut Kicking and Screaming(NY Film Festival premiere). She has worked extensively in NY theater at companies including The New Group, Primary Stages and Theater for a New Audience. She has appeared on Broadway in The Rose Tattooopposite Mercedes Ruehl and Anthony LaPaglia directed by Tony Award winner Robert Falls, Some Americans Abroad directed by Roger Michel (Changing Lanes, Notting Hill) and The Tenth Mandirected by Ulu Grosbard both at Lincoln Center. Born and raised in the Bronx. She graduated from Columbia University in 3 years with a double major in English and Political Science. She ran 3 NYC Marathons.

Recording live at BroadwayCon 2018 - Donna Murphy, Lesli Margherita, Emily Skeggs and Andrew Keenan Bolger got together with Ilana to share war stories about auditioning. This conversation is equal parts hilarious and inspirational. Each of these Broadway stars has a unique perspective on the challenges and joys of putting yourself out there when faced with auditioning -- even though their careers have garnered them awards, accolades and fame. Their generosity in sharing how they approach the process of auditioning is a gift to all artists.

Melissa Anelli is an American author and webmistress. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller "Harry, A History," which chronicles the Harry Potter phenomenon with exclusive interview material and a foreword written by Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling. Anelli is also the full-time webmistress of The Leaky Cauldron, a commercial fansite devoted to the Harry Potter franchise for fans. Anelli also is one of three hosts of the Leaky Cauldron's official podcast PotterCast, which talks about various aspects of the Harry Potter books, movies, video games and more. She is the founder of Mischief Management which produces Broadway Con Leaky Con, Geeky Con and Con of Thrones.

Chazz Palminteri wrote and performed his one-man show A Bronx Tale for the first time in 1989 before moving it off-Broadway. Mr. Palminteri went on to write the screenplay and co-star in the screen adaptation of A Bronx Tale alongside Robert De Niro. Mr. Palminteri has more than 55 movies to his credit as an actor, writer, and director, including The Usual Suspects, Bullets Over Broadway (Academy Award nomination), Analyze This, Hurlyburly, Mullholland Falls, Faithful (also written by Mr. Palminteri), A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, Yonkers Joe, Jolene and most recently Legend starring Tom Hardy. Mr. Palminteri has had a recurring role on the hit show Modern Family and has starred in Blue Bloods. Mr. Palminteri directed the HBO series “Oz,” Showtime’s “Women vs Men,” and the feature film Noel.

Beanie Feldstein currently stars in Greta Gerwig’s LADY BIRD opposite Saoirse Ronan. Set in Sacramento, California in 2002, the film takes an affecting look at the relationships that shape us, the beliefs that define us, and the unmatched beauty of a place called home. Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson (Ronan) is a loving, deeply opinionated and strong-willed high-school senior struggling to assert her independence, and Beanie plays the role of “Julie,” the loyal best friend who understands “Lady Bird” like no one else.Since A24 theatrically released LADY BIRD on November 3rd, Beanie has received critical acclaim for her performance, as has the film and its stellar cast including Laurie Metcalf, Tracy Letts, Timothee Chalamet and Lucas Hedges. LADY BIRD was nominated for a Golden Globe Award, Independent Spirit Award, Broadcast Film Critics’ Association Award, and named one of the top 10 films of the year by both the National Board of Review and American Film Institute. The film was also recognized by various critics’ groups including: New York Film Critics Circle, Boston Online Film Critics Association, Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, North Texas Film Critics Association, Washington, DC Film Critics Association, San Diego Film Critics Society, Chicago Film Critics Association, St. Louis Film Critics Association, Seattle Film Critics Society, Houston Film Critics Association and Phoenix Critics Circle. Furthermore, LADY BIRD broke the record of being the most reviewed film ever to maintain a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.In addition to the rave reviews of Beanie’s performance in LADY BIRD, she is also receiving recognition for her portrayal of “Minnie Fay” in the Broadway smash hit musical HELLO, DOLLY! with Bette Midler. The musical won a 2017 Tony Award for “Best Revival of a Musical.”Beanie will next star in Whitney Cummings’ THE FEMALE BRAIN which will be released by IFC on February 9th and also stars Cummings and Sofia Vergara. Previously she starred in Nicholas Stoller’s NEIGHBORS 2: SORORITY RISING alongside Seth Rogen, Zac Efron, Rose Byrne and Chloe Moretz. The film grossed over $100 million worldwide.Her television credits include ABC Family comedy FAN GIRL, ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK on Netflix and THE DEVIL YOU KNOW, an HBO pilot directed by Gus Van Sant.

Writer-producer Steven Rogers was born in Seattle but because his father produced regional theatre for a living, grew up all across America wherever his family had a season. Forgoing college, he moved to N.Y.C. at 17 and studied acting with Sandford Meisner at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre where he first met and befriended I, TONYA’s LaVona, Allison Janney. He toured in Larry Shue’s play The Foreigner winning a critics prize in Los Angeles and moved to Hollywood in order to become famous. He didn’t. Instead, he wrote his first screenplay, KATE AND LEOPOLD, in order to be in it. He wasn’t. In very quick succession he wrote, HOPE FLOATS, Anne Tyler’s EARTHLY POSSESSIONS and STEPMOM. He then decided to focus on writing and just act on the page. Other writing credits includes P.S. I LOVE YOU, LOVE THE COOPERS, which he also executive produced, and his latest, I, TONYA which made the 2016 Blacklist and won the 2016 Hit List. He also produced I, TONYA with Bryan Unkeless, Margot Robbie and Tom Ackerly. I, TONYA is currently in theaters and was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Comedy. He is currently producing his script, FLORA PLUM and his script THE DRIVING LESSON with Octavia Spencer attached to star and produce.

Matt Rodin is a creator who believes art is a channel to the core human spirit. He’s working to ignite the creative power in each of us so that our work can expand us into a more empathetic and conscious species. He’s worked with brands like SoulCycle, Dear Evan Hansen and The Smithsonian to produce innovative and engaging content. He’s performed across the country with his original music, in professional productions, and was named one of Broadway’s 40 under 40 for 2017. He is the co-creator and writer of the viral video series ‘BROdway’ and is the creator and host of ‘The Red Carpet Challenge’, which has streamed more than 65 episodes on Playbill and Broadway.com.

An Olivier Award winner for her West End debut as Inez in ZORRO THE MUSICAL, Lesli made her Broadway debut originating the role of Mrs. Wormwood in MATILDA THE MUSICAL. After over 1000 performances, she bid farewell to the Broadway company of Matilda and crossed the street to The Helen Hayes to star as the diva Mona Kent in the Broadway premiere of Randy Skinner's DAMES AT SEA. In September 2016, Lesli returned to the role she originated to close out the Broadway run of MATILDA.Lesli currently recurs on three television dramas: Homeland (Showtime), Instinct (CBS), and Seven Seconds (Netflix). This past fall she starred opposite Topher Grace, Taye Diggs & JC Chasez in the feature film "Opening Night" which can be seen on Netflix following its theatrical release.Born and raised in California, Lesli trained at UCLA and was soon after chosen to star in MGM's television series "Fame LA" directed by Kenny Ortega. She has gone on to star and recur on numerous television shows and pilots including "Donny!", "The Good Wife", "Major Crimes", "The Suite Life On Deck", "Charmed", "NYPD Blue", and "On The Lot", produced by Steven Spielberg.Film credits include the movie musical 'Opening Night' opposite Topher Grace & Taye Diggs, 'Lucky Stiff' with Jason Alexander, Joel Schumacher's 'The Number 23', and the Sam Raimi produced 'Boogeyman 2'. Lesli's voice can also be heard on several animated films and shows including Disney's 'Cinderella 3' and Nickelodeon's "Sponge Bob Squarepants".Regional stage credits include Adelaide in GUYS & DOLLS (Bucks County Playhouse), Signora Psyche Zinobia in A SCYTHE OF TIME (NYMF; Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role), Esmeralda in HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (Sacramento Music Circus), Lilli / Kate in KISS ME KATE (Reprise; Ovation Award - Best Actress), THE GRONHOLM METHOD (The Falcon ; Ovation nom. - Best Ensemble), Aldonza in MAN OF LA MANCHA opposite Davis Gaines (MTW; Ovation nom. & LADCC nom - Best Actress), Julie in SHOWBOAT (Goodspeed Opera), Audrey in LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (La Mirada), Lady of the Lake in SPAMALOT opposite Gary Beach (Sacramento Music Circus), Ilona in SHE LOVES ME (CLOSBC), the West Coast Premiere of Michael John LaChiusa's SEE WHAT I WANNA SEE (Blank Theatre), Rated RSO (Boston Court), and Gloria in DAMN YANKEES(Reprise; dir. Jason Alexander).Lesli is a published author with two books currently available on iTune and Amazon: NECK PUNCH and CARRY ON: Advice from the "Queen", a series of 'inspirational' messages inspired from her Twitter feed (@QueenLesli). (debuted at #1 on the Humor charts) and BLU!, about a unique lobster who teaches us that we are all special. She is the creator/star of 'Looks Not Books' and 'Ship Happens' the popular backstage vlogs commissioned by Broadway.com which can also be seen on YouTube.Lesli's critically acclaimed solo shows RULE YOUR KINGDOM, ALL HAIL THE QUEEN​, BROAD continue to play to crowds across the country.

Uma Thurman is currently making her Broadway debut in "The Parisian Woman." She is best known for her portrayal of Mia Wallace in Quentin Tarantino's critically lauded "Pulp Fiction," receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the cult classic. Thurman also garnered a Golden Globe Award nominations for her role in the "Kill Bill" film franchise. Thurman earned a Golden Globe Award for "Hysterical Blindness," in which she starred and produced, and her first Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Dramatic Series on NBC's series “Smash.” She was previously seen on stage in New York in "The Misanthrope" at Classic Stage Company in 1999. Her TV and film accolades include Bravo’s “Imposters,” NBC’s miniseries “The Slap,” Lars Von Trier's "Nymphomaniac: Vol. 1," "The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen," "Dangerous Liaisons," "Henry & June," "Beautiful Girls, "Batman & Robin," "Les Miserables," "Sweet and Lowdown," "Prime" with Meryl Streep, "Be Cool" and "The Producers."Thurman recently completed production on various films including Lars Von Trier’s "The House That Jack Built," "The Brits Are Coming" and "Down a Dark Hall." She will also star opposite Robert De Niro in Tim Hill’s "The War with Grandpa." Born in Massachusetts, Thurman currently lives in New York City with her three children.

Sarah Jessica Parker, who played Carrie Bradshaw on the HBO television series "Sex and the City" (1998-2004) as well as serving as an executive producer, has won four Golden Globe Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Emmy Awards. Parker reprised her role and served as a producer for the screen adaptation of the hit series with the theatrical release of "Sex and the City" and "Sex and the City 2." Past film credits include: "I Don't Know How She Does It," "Smart People," "Failure to Launch," "The Family Stone," "State and Main," "Mars Attacks!," "Ed Wood," "The First Wives Club," "Miami Rhapsody" and "Honeymoon in Vegas."She has worked in the theatre, on and off Broadway, since 1976 when she debuted on Broadway in "The Innocents" directed by Harold Pinter. Other Broadway credits include: the title role in "Annie," "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying," and "Once Upon a Mattress." Off-Broadway credits include: the original production of "To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday" and "The Commons of Pensacola." Parker currently starts on HBO’s television series "Divorce," in which she stars and serves as an executive producer.In 2014, Parker launched her namesake label, SJP, which is carried by Amazon Fashion, Bloomingdales, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus online, Saks.com, and Zappos Luxury, as well as various other boutiques and international retailers. Parker designed this collection of shoes, handbags and accessories in association with George Malkemus III. In 2016, SJP launched its first stand-alone store, with a second that just opened this past summer. Parker released her perfume, Lovely, in 2005. Ten years later, it is currently a top selling global brand. She recently introduced a new fragrance to the SJP Beauty collection called Stash.Parker currently serves as a Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors for the New York City Ballet. In November 2009, the Obama administration elected her to be a member of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. She has partnered with schools in Oregon and, most recently, Minnesota for The Turnaround Arts Initiative.​​

Author of The New York Times bestseller, "Patti LuPone: A Memoir," Miss Patti LuPone just concluded her critically acclaimed run as cosmetics pioneer Helena Rubinstein in the Scott Frankel-Michael Korie-Douglas Wright-Michael Grief musical "War Paint."Her recent NY stage appearances include Douglas Carter Beane’s new play "Shows For Days," directed by Jerry Zaks at Lincoln Center Theater, her debut with the New York City Ballet as Anna in their new production of "The Seven Deadly Sins," Joanne in the New York Philharmonic’s production of "Company," David Mamet’s "The Anarchist," and Lincoln Center Theater’s production of the musical "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown," for which she was nominated for Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards.Winner of the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Actress in a Musical and the Drama League Award for Outstanding Performance of the Season for her performance as Madame Rose in the most recent Broadway production of "Gypsy," her other stage credits include appearances with the Los Angeles Opera in their new production of John Corigliano’s "The Ghosts of Versailles" and Weill-Brecht’s "Mahagonny" (debut), the world premiere of Jake Heggie’s opera "To Hell and Back" with San Francisco’s Baroque Philharmonia Orchestra, Mrs. Lovett in John Doyle’s production of "Sweeney Todd" (Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle nominations; Drama League Award for Outstanding Contribution to Musical Theatre), the title role in Marc Blitzstein’s "Regina," a musical version of Lillian Hellman’s "The Little Foxes" at the Kennedy Center, Fosca in a concert version of "Passion," which was also broadcast on PBS’ Live From Lincoln Center, a multi-city tour of her theatrical concert Matters of the Heart, the City Center Encores! productions of "Can-Can" and "Pal Joey," the NY Philharmonic’s productions of "Candide" and "Sweeney Todd" (NY Phil debut) and performances on Broadway in Michael Frayn’s "Noises Off," David Mamet’s "The Old Neighborhood," Terrence McNally's "Master Class" and in her own concert "Patti LuPone On Broadway."In London, she won the Olivier Award for her performances as Fantine in the original production of "Les Miserables" and in the Acting Company production of "The Cradle Will Rock." She also created the role of Norma Desmond in "Sunset Boulevard," for which she was nominated for an Olivier Award, and recreated her Broadway performance of Maria Callas in "Master Class."Film: Cliffs of Freedom (upcoming), The Comedian, Union Square, Parker, City by the Sea, David Mamet’s Heist, State and Main; Just Looking, Summer of Sam, The 24 Hour Woman, Family Prayers, Driving Miss Daisy, Witness. Television: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Penny Dreadful (Critics Choice nomination), Girls, American Horror Story: Coven, Law & Order: SVU, Glee, 30 Rock, PBS Great Performances The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, Ugly Betty, Will & Grace (as herself), PBS Great Performances’ Candide, Oz , the TNT film Monday Night Mayhem, PBS’ Evening At The Pops with John Williams and Yo Yo Ma, Falcone, Bonanno: A Godfather’s Story (Showtime); Frasier (1998 Emmy nomination); Law & Order, An Evening with Patti LuPone (PBS), the NBC movie Her Last Chance, Showtime's ACE Award and Emmy nominated The Song Spinner (Daytime Emmy nomination, Best Actress), The Water Engine, L.B.J., AMC's Remember WENN and ABC's Life Goes On. Recordings include: Far Away Places, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Patti LuPone at Les Mouches, Gypsy, Sweeney Todd (both the 2006 Broadway revival cast recording and 2000 live performance recording on NY Philharmonic’s Special Editions Label); and The Lady with the Torch.

Rob Morrow is a multi-Emmy and Golden Globe nominated actor, writer, and director with an established career in television, film, and theater spanning over three decades. Rob shot to stardom with his portrayal of New York doctor gone‐to Alaska, Joel Fleischman, on the hit television series, "Northern Exposure," garnering him three Golden Globe and two Emmy Award nominations. He played the iconic role of Don Eppes on the hit CBS drama, "Numb3rs," which ran for six seasons.Morrow's film credits include starring in Robert Redford's Oscar-nominated film "Quiz Show," Albert Brooks' comedy "Mother," Bruce Beresford's "Last Dance" opposite Sharon Stone, and "Into My Heart."Currently, Rob can be seen on ABC’s new hit show "Designated Survivor." He was recently on the critically acclaimed FX mini-series, "The People Vs. OJ Simpson," portraying defense attorney Barry Scheck, and on Showtime's new series "Billions," playing Counselor to the Attorney General, Adam Degiulio. He will be seen opposite Queen Latifah, Betsy Brandt and Marin Ireland in the Lifetime TV movie, "Flint."Rob is an accomplished singer and guitarist. He plays all around Los Angeles with his band which features his musical collaborator Carlos Calvo. They have also toured New York, Maine, and Nevada.

Julian Ovenden, a Screen Actors Guild Award winner, talks with Ilana about his roles on "Knightfall," "Downton Abbey," and many other amazing projects. Julian shares details about his first musical in London, "Merrily We Roll Along," by the inimitable Stephen Sondheim. Sondheim was there at rehearsal daily and re-worked material for and with Juilan. The two often sat at the piano together since Julian had to play a lot in the show. Julian's gorgeous tenor voice has made him one of the most sought after concert performers in the world; he has three solo albums to his name. The son of a vicar who became the vicar for England's royal family, Julian's discusses what is was like for his family to live on the property at Windsor Castle. An actor who once had a phobia about accents, Julian shares how he learned to embrace them in order to stretch himself. And Julian gets candid with Ilana about the ups and downs of his career and tells hilarious audition stories that any actor will relate to.British actor, Julian Ovenden is an accomplished thespian and musician, who has also had memorable performances in globally renowned television and film projects over the span of his 17-year career. He has starred on Broadway and in the West End, in high profile television series on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as fashioning an international career as a concert and recording artist.Ovenden currently stars as ‘William De Nogaret’ in HISTORY’s “Knightfall,” created by Don Handfield and Richard Rayner and executively produced by Jeremy Renner. The story centers on the mysterious but true accounts of the Knights Templar, the elite warriors of the Crusades. It delves into the great secrets protected by the Templars and tells the story of faith, loyalty, and brotherhood that help sustain these warriors on the battlefield and the dark events that would forever sear the infamous date of Friday the 13th into the world’s psyche. As a solo singer, Ovenden has appeared with many of the world’s leading orchestras, including The New York Philharmonic, The New York Pops, The Northern Sinfonia, The Liverpool Philharmonic, The RPO, The LPO, The Belfast Symphony Orchestra, the John Wilson Orchestra, The BBC Symphony, The Royal Concertgebouw, and The BBC Concert Orchestra. Ovenden made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2014 and with much success, performed an additional headlining concert in 2016. In 2013, Ovenden recorded a debut album for Decca records entitled “If You Stay” and has since made a “Rogers and Hammerstein” record with John Wilson for Warner Classics and a “Downton Abbey Christmas” release. On stage at the Booth theatre in 2006, Ovenden made his Broadway debut in “Butley,” as ‘Joseph Keyston’ opposite Nathan Lane. In 2011, Ovenden starred as ‘Death’ in “Death Takes a Holiday” for The Roundabout Theatre Company and appeared as ‘J.M. Barrie’ in The Weinstein Company’s “Finding Neverland.” Ovenden first appeared on British television as ‘Andrew Foyle’ starring opposite Michael Kitchen in the widely adored “Foyle’s War” for five seasons. He has also appeared as ‘Charles Blake’ in two seasons of the worldwide phenomenon “Downton Abbey.” Domestically, Ovenden is best known for playing ‘Jeremy Lambert’ in Season 3 and 4 of CBS’s drama series, “Person of Interest.” Further television credits include ‘Val Dartie’ in “The Forsyte Saga,” “Related,” and “SMASH.” Ovenden can be seen in the films, “Colonia,” “The Confessions,” and the British indie war film “Allies.”Ovenden currently resides in England with opera singer Kate Royal, their son Johnny Beau, daughter Audrey, and Roman the dog.

When Nia Vardalos, the Academy Award nominated actress, began her career she was faced with the reality that not many in Hollywood were interested in hiring a Greek actress. In response to her early struggles Nia became proactive; her semi-autobiographical first screenplay "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" soon followed. Initially unable to get her movie made, Nia then decided to adapt her screenplay into a one-woman show for the theater. (She was inspired to do this after seeing Julia Sweeney perform her one-woman show "God Said Ha!") To help build an audience Nia handed out fliers at her church. The Greek community in Los Angeles soon embraced the show en masse. Fellow Greek-American actress Rita Wilson and her husband Tom Hanks came to the play and the rest is indie film history. How Nia navigated that experience -- and how years later she went through the experience of adopting her daughter (a journey that she writes about in her best selling book "Instant Mom") is incredibly inspiring.Academy Award and Golden Globe nominee Nia Vardalos was born and raised in Winnipeg, Canada, and is classically trained. After graduating from Toronto's Ryerson Theater School, she performed in Shakespeare and many musicals, later taking a job in the box office of The Second City so she could watch the shows for free. One fateful night, the lead actress fell ill and Vardalos convinced producers that she had memorized the show and to let her fill in. The next day she was hired, going on to write/perform in twelve Second City revues and winning Chicago's Jeff Award for Best Actress.After a few years living in Los Angeles, unable to get a film job, she wrote, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”. It continues to hold the title of #1 Romantic Comedy of all time. She received an Academy Award nom for best Screenplay, Golden Globe nom for Best Actress, and won the Independent Spirit Award and People’s Choice award.She is the screenwriter/actor/producer of "Connie and Carla", “My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2”, lead actor in "My Life in Ruins", and "For a Good Time Call", with Tom Hanks is the co-writer of "Larry Crowne", plus is the actor/writer/director of "I Hate Valentine's Day."Vardalos is the author of INSTANT MOM, a New York Times bestseller, the true story of adopting her daughter as a toddler from American Foster Care. Social workers confirm that, to date, the information from her book has placed over 1300 children in permanent homes. Vardalos also donates all proceeds to adoption charities.Some of her television credits include co-hosting ABC’s “The Great American Baking Show”, and guesting on, “Dr. Ken”, “The Catch”, “Graves”, “Law & Order: SVU”, "Grey's Anatomy", "Curb Your Enthusiasm”, “Jane The Virgin”, hosting "Saturday Night Live”, and voicing Angie Diaz in Disney’s animated series "Star Vs. the Forces of Evil."Besides her years with The Second City, stage credits include “Jennie” in Theate20’s COMPANY directed by Gary Griffin. (winner Best Actress Broadway Theater Award). Directed by Thomas Kail (HAMILTON), and performed for two consecutive seasons at THE PUBLIC, Vardalos plays SUGAR in TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS, her adaptation based on the bestselling book by Cheryl Strayed. Vardalos wrote the play over the course of three years.Nia Vardalos currently volunteers with adoption charities, including matching prospective parents with children living in foster care. She volunteers at her twelve year old daughter’s school, mentors five writers per year, and currently lives in Los Angeles. Vardalos calls herself a Fearless Idiot because she believes it’s best to leap without asking questions.

Tony Award winner Kelli O'Hara is one of Broadway’s most celebrated leading ladies. Born and raised in Oklahoma, Kelli spent most of her childhood on her family’s cattle farm. A serendipitous move to another town while in high school offered Kelli a new beginning, one in which she immersed herself in the arts. She never looked back. An interest in opera began her lifelong relationship with vocal teacher Florence Birdwell. (Ms. Birdwell had taught another actress from Oklahoma, Kristin Chenoweth. Indeed it was Kristin Chenoweth who introduced Kelli to her first agent in New York City.) Small parts led to bigger ones; eventually a leading role in the national tour of "Jekyll and Hyde" followed. Kelli then made her Broadway debut as a replacement in the musical horror-drama loosely based on the novella by Robert Louis Stevenson. In her conversation with Ilana, Kelli discusses how there were times when she thought perhaps she had landed the role that would be her big break, but it was not to be. Ironically, it was a bit of luck that found her in California when the workshop of a new musical called "Light in the Piazza" was being cast. It was that workshop that led to the Lincoln Center production that made Kelli O’Hara a Broadway star. From farm girl to Tony Award winning actress, Kelli O'Hara shares her amazing story with Ilana on this episode of "Little Known Facts!"Kelli O’Hara has unequivocally established herself as one of Broadway’s great leading ladies. Her portrayal of Anna Leonowens in the critically acclaimed revival of "The King and I" recently garnered her a Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical, along with Drama League and Outer Critics nominations. In 2014, her performance as Francesca in the musical adaptation of "The Bridges of Madison County" earned her Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle nominations. Also that year, she starred as Mrs. Darling in NBC’s live telecast of “Peter Pan” alongside Allison Williams and Christian Borle, and on New Year’s Eve, Kelli made her Metropolitan Opera debut in the production of "The Merry Widow" with Renee Fleming. A native of Oklahoma, Kelli received a degree in opera, and after winning the State Metropolitan Opera Competition, moved to New York and enrolled in the Lee Strasberg Institute. She made her Broadway debut in "Jekyll & Hyde" and followed it with Sondheim’s "Follies," "Sweet Smell of Success" opposite John Lithgow, and "Dracula." In 2003 Kelli committed to a production of "The Light in the Piazza" at Seattle’s Intiman Theatre. The show landed on Broadway in 2005 and earned Kelli her first Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations. She moved from one critical and commercial success to another when she joined Harry Connick on Broadway in the 2006 Tony award-winning production of "The Pajama Game," for which Kelli received Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Award nominations. Kelli starred in the Tony Award-winning revival of "South Pacific" at Lincoln Center, enrapturing audiences and critics alike with her soulful and complex interpretation of Nellie Forbush, and garnering Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Award nominations. She later teamed up with Matthew Broderick in Broadway's musical comedy "Nice Work if You Can Get it," earning Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League and Outer Critics Circle nominations, as well as the Fred Astaire Nomination for dance. Among her film and television credits are "Sex & The City 2," Martin Scorsese’s short "The Key to Reserva" opposite Simon Baker; "The Dying Gaul," "Blue Bloods" (NBC pilot), "All Rise" (NBC pilot), "Alexander Hamilton" (Maria Reynolds) starring Brian F. O’Byrne (PBS), "NUMB3RS" (CBS), "All My Children," the animated series "Car Talk," and numerous live performances on national television shows. Kelli currently resides in New York City.

Jordan Roth, the Tony Award winning President of Jujamcyn Theaters, is responsible for bringing "Spring Awakening," "Clybourne Park," "Kinky Boots," "Springsteen on Broadway," "Falsettos," "Mean Girls," "Frozen," "Angels In America" and many other hits to Broadway. The youngest president ever of a theater dynasty, Jordan has quickly become one of the most respected producers in the American theater. On this episode of "Little Known Facts" Jordan talks with Ilana about his desire to bring theater to Broadway that inspires and changes lives; indeed, Jordan's gift for bringing together other creatives and cultivating talent has allowed him to bring some of the most powerful game changing plays to the Broadway stage. Jordan shares intimate details about his childhood and what led him to a career focused on creativity and community. Jordan is a tireless activist for political causes that support people in need from all walks of life -- often working with organizations that support the LGBTQI community. This is a rare look into the life of one of the most powerful members of the theater community. Jordan Roth is widely recognized as a theatrical innovator, championing new shows that push the boundaries of Broadway and creating unique experiences for audiences. As President of Jujamcyn Theaters, he oversees five Broadway theatres, presenting some of the most influential and successful musicals and plays on Broadway today. Current productions include the Tony Award-winning Best Musicals "The Book of Mormon" and "Kinky Boots," "Springsteen on Broadway" and the upcoming "Frozen" and "Mean Girls." Jordan recently produced "Present Laughter" starring Kevin Kline in his Tony Award-winning performance as well the Tony-nominated revival of "Falsettos" with Lincoln Center Theater. Previous producing credits include the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Best Play "Clybourne Park" and his first production, the long-running "The Donkey Show" Off-Broadway. This spring, Jordan is joining with the National Theatre to bring to Broadway the eagerly anticipated production of "Angels in America" starring Nathan Lane and Andrew Garfield. Combining his love of theatre with his passion for making a difference in our community, Jordan created Givenik.com, a unique service allowing theatergoers to buy discounted tickets and give 5% of their ticket price to the charity of their choice. Givenik.com currently supports over 750 charitable organizations, including God's Love We Deliver. Jordan writes a regular column on Deadline Hollywood with Jeremy Gerard debating issues of the day in theatre and culture. His new online cultural commentary comedy series "The Birds" and the BS with Jordan Roth launches soon. In a relatively short period of time, Jordan has generated much interest in his vision and accomplishments. He was honored to be included in Fast Company's "Most Creative People in Business 1000," Crain's "Forty Under 40," Variety's "50 Creatives to Watch," The Daily News' "50 New Yorkers to Watch," Time Out New York's "42 Reasons to Applaud New York Theatre," Paper Magazine's "Beautiful People Issue," and Out Magazine's "Out 100" three times. Recently, Jordan was recognized as a Living Landmark by the New York Landmarks Conservancy. Jordan graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton University with degrees in philosophy and theatre, and received his MBA from Columbia Business School. He serves on the Board of Trustees of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, The Broadway League, Times Square Alliance and the Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation. Jordan and his husband Richie Jackson live in New York City with their two sons Jackson and Levi.

In Part 2 of their conversation, Tony Award winner Donna Murphy shares with Ilana personal stories of how she began her career. She recalls hilarious details of being cast early on -- even when the odds were against her. And she talks about how she prepared with great precision for her audition for the role of "Fosca" in Sondheim's Passion -- a rolethat secured her place as a Broadway legend. She explains how Sondheim and Lapine work together and describes their collaboration as "shared poetry." With great sensitivity and rawness, Donna discusses how she now negotiates life and work after the death of her beloved husband and partner, Shawn Elliott. And ... she sings on the podcast!!!Donna Murphy’s award-winning performances in theater, film and television have forged a career of exceptional diversity, impressing both audiences and critics with her depth and skill. This “seductive actress of major transformative powers” (NY Times) was named by New York Magazine as one of “Three Living Legends” of the New York Theater and awarded in 2003 one of their prestigious “New York Awards” for her work in the theater. One of the most beloved and honored stage actresses of her generation, Murphy earned the Drama League Award for Outstanding Achievement in Musical Theater. She currently shares the iconic role of Dolly Gallagher Levi with the legendary Bette Midler in the Tony Award winning revival of "Hello, Dolly!," for which she has received great critical acclaim.Ms. Murphy received the first of two Tony® Awards for Best Actress in a Musical, along with the Drama Desk and Drama League Awards, for her spellbinding creation of Fosca in Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s "Passion," which was filmed for PBS’ American Playhouse. She received her second Tony® Award, as well as a Drama League Award and Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations, for her “resplendent, matchless” (New York Post) performance as Anna Leonowens in the 1996 Tony® Award-winning revival of "The King and I." In 2004, she was honored with the Drama League Outstanding Achievement Award for her work in Musical Theater, the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and Astaire Awards, as well as another Tony® nomination, for her hilarious comic tour de force as Ruth Sherwood in the Broadway Revival of "Wonderful Town." She returned to Broadway in 2007, receiving Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle Awards, and a Tony® nomination for her mesmerizing portrayal of the legendary actress-singer Lotte Lenya in "LoveMusik," directed by Harold Prince. Murphy’s first television film, HBO’s “Someone Had to be Benny,” earned her a Cable Ace Award as Best Actress in a Drama Special or Series, as well as a Daytime Emmy. Most recently, she starred as Jane Green, the matriarch of a prominent Southern family torn apart by the Civil War in PBS’ Mercy Street and guest starred on ABC’s hit show “Quantico” and CBS’ “Doubt” with Katherine Heigl and Laverne Cox. Other regular and recurring appearances include the mysterious “elegant woman” Angela Forrester in ABC’s “Resurrection,” Georgie on VH1’s “Hindsight,” Darlene Garretti on CBS’ “Made in Jersey” alongside Janet Montgomery and Kyle McLaughlin, the steely Denise Goodman on TNT’s “Trust Me” with Eric McCormack and Tom Cavanaugh, Heather Olshansky in CBS’ “Hack” opposite David Morse, and her critically acclaimed comedic performance as the neurotic psychiatrist Dr. Ruby Stern on ABC’s sitcom, “What About Joan,” starring Joan Cusack. For her contribution to the Arts, Culture and Public life, she’s received special honors from New York Magazine, Symphony Space, Greenwich Village’s Caring Community, the Women’s Project, The Little Orchestra Society, Irish America Magazine, the Breukelein Institute and Emerson College.

Donna Murphy is a two-time Tony Award winning American musical theater treasure. Donna's singular voice, her comedic skills, her dancing and the authenticity and humanity she brings to every role that she plays has made her one of the most beloved actresses of her generation. From Fosca in Sondheim’s "Passion" to her current role of Dolly Levi in "Hello, Dolly!," Donna brings the audience to its feet every night.In part one of this two part episode, Donna discusses her childhood and what it was like growing up as the eldest of seven children. She shares with Ilana the discovery of her musical gifts at the age of three! And she talks of her process and the discipline needed to find every role. Donna also reveals her deep belief that she was brought into this world to perform.Welcome Donna Murphy!Donna Murphy’s award-winning performances in theater, film and television have forged a career of exceptional diversity, impressing both audiences and critics with her depth and skill. This “seductive actress of major transformative powers” (NY Times) was named by New York Magazine as one of “Three Living Legends” of the New York Theater and awarded in 2003 one of their prestigious “New York Awards” for her work in the theater. One of the most beloved and honored stage actresses of her generation, Murphy earned the Drama League Award for Outstanding Achievement in Musical Theater. She currently shares the iconic role of Dolly Gallagher Levi with the legendary Bette Midler in the Tony Award winning revival of "Hello, Dolly!," for which she has received great critical acclaim.Ms. Murphy received the first of two Tony® Awards for Best Actress in a Musical, along with the Drama Desk and Drama League Awards, for her spellbinding creation of Fosca in Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s "Passion," which was filmed for PBS’ American Playhouse. She received her second Tony® Award, as well as a Drama League Award and Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations, for her “resplendent, matchless” (New York Post) performance as Anna Leonowens in the 1996 Tony® Award-winning revival of "The King and I." In 2004, she was honored with the Drama League Outstanding Achievement Award for her work in Musical Theater, the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and Astaire Awards, as well as another Tony® nomination, for her hilarious comic tour de force as Ruth Sherwood in the Broadway Revival of "Wonderful Town." She returned to Broadway in 2007, receiving Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle Awards, and a Tony® nomination for her mesmerizing portrayal of the legendary actress-singer Lotte Lenya in "LoveMusik," directed by Harold Prince. Murphy’s first television film, HBO’s “Someone Had to be Benny,” earned her a Cable Ace Award as Best Actress in a Drama Special or Series, as well as a Daytime Emmy. Most recently, she starred as Jane Green, the matriarch of a prominent Southern family torn apart by the Civil War in PBS’ Mercy Street and guest starred on ABC’s hit show “Quantico” and CBS’ “Doubt” with Katherine Heigl and Laverne Cox. Other regular and recurring appearances include the mysterious “elegant woman” Angela Forrester in ABC’s “Resurrection,” Georgie on VH1’s “Hindsight,” Darlene Garretti on CBS’ “Made in Jersey” alongside Janet Montgomery and Kyle McLaughlin, the steely Denise Goodman on TNT’s “Trust Me” with Eric McCormack and Tom Cavanaugh, Heather Olshansky in CBS’ “Hack” opposite David Morse, and her critically acclaimed comedic performance as the neurotic psychiatrist Dr. Ruby Stern on ABC’s sitcom, “What About Joan,” starring Joan Cusack. For her contribution to the Arts, Culture and Public life, she’s received special honors from New York Magazine, Symphony Space, Greenwich Village’s Caring Community, the Women’s Project, The L

Will Roland currently stars as "Jared Kleinman" in the Tony Award winning musical "Dear Evan Hansen." Will had previously co-starred with Ben Platt in the promising musical "The Black Suits," so when they reunited for DEH the two already had much of the needed dynamics in place to create their indelible performances. On this episode of "Little Known Facts," Will shares what it has been like to live inside the meteoric rise of "Dear Evan Hansen," candidly discussing the great joys as well as the invasion of privacy that has come with this gig. Will also discusses how he grew up helping out in his family's antique business, acquiring tremendous knowledge of fine art and estate furniture. (He also demonstrates for Ilana his mad skills as an auctioneer! Will helped raise thousands of dollars for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids by auctioning off the plaster cast Ben Platt wears in the show to the highest bidder.) Will studied musical theater at New York University and is an accomplished lighting designer. He performs cabaret with Joe Iconis and others. Learn all about Will! Tune in now!Will Roland is a Brooklyn-based actor/singer/human currently making his Broadway Debut in "Dear Evan Hansen," in which he originated the role of Jared Kleinman (Broadway.com Audience Choice Award: Favorite Funny Performance). Recent credits include: "Dear Evan Hansen" (Second Stage & Arena Stage), "The Black Suits" (CTG & Barrington), "The Bus" (59E59), "LoserSongs" (Don't Tell Mama), & "Academia Nuts!" (NYMF). Will frequently collaborates with Joe Iconis & Family. Passionate about new work, he's helped develop plays & musicals with 2nd Stage, La Jolla, Arena, CAP21, Don't Tell Mama, and various Fringe festivals. Thanks Mom, Dad, Val, Steph, Station3, SRDA, and my many loving teachers for their support throughout this crazy endeavor. www.will-roland.com Twitter:@ll_roland

Laura Heywood (a.k.a. @BroadwayGirlNYC ) was an anonymous Broadway influencer with a huge social media following until she decided to reveal her true identity. A passionate enthusiast for all things Broadway, Laura used her expertise in brand identity to create a niche for herself as an influencer in the theater world and beyond. An early user of Twitter, Laura has always made the most of her platform and huge social media following by highlighting many wonderful not-for-profit organizations, including her beloved "Story Pirates." And in this truly inspirational episode, Laura opens up to Ilana about a darker time in her life and how she got through it -- and what she continues to do to keep a healthy mental attitude. Whether you know her as "Broadway Girl NYC" or simply Laura, you won't want to miss her on the next "Little Known Facts!"Laura Heywood is a professional enthusiast: a multi-faceted host, consultant, performer, pundit, and writer widely recognized for her commitment to positivity. Her formerly anonymous alter-ego, @BroadwayGirlNYC, is widely regarded as a leading advocate, ambassador, and best friend to Broadway (Forbes calls her "the most vocal and visible supporter in the business”). She has worked in fields ranging from sports talk radio (San Francisco Giants) to commercial acting (Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty) to social media consulting (Tori Amos), always bringing a point of view of contagious joy. Laura works regularly as a celebrity interviewer for outlets including AOL’s Build Series and CBS New York, and is the creator of the web series The Between The Shows Show. She volunteers regularly and is on the Board of Directors for the national arts & education non-profit Story Pirates.

Cazzie David, daughter of "Seinfeld" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" creator Larry David, was followed by TMZ the day she moved into her college dorm. Any hopes for an anonymous matriculation were blown immediately -- and most of the students Cazzie encountered on campus weren't quite sure how to interact with the child of a major Hollywood star. The one person who didn't seem to be nonplussed by it all was Elisa Kalani. In her refreshingly straight forward manner, Elisa acknowledged how wonderful -- and strange -- it was to have Cazzie at the school. The two freshmen became fast friends and have remained the best of friends ever since those first surreal days. Cazzie and Elisa, co-creators of the critically acclaimed web series "Eighty-Sixed," chat with Ilana about their work and what it means to be "millennials." Elisa and Cazzie describe their relationship to technology as second nature -- but as millennials they are actually on the cusp; they lived a life before having all of these technological advances and social media so they know life before and after Snapchat. "Eighty-Sixed," as described by Cazzie, is simultaneously critical of her generation and sympathetic. In other words, it's honest, real and of course hilarious. These two young, smart writers go in depth with Ilana about what it was like doing a project that shot in Larry David’s home -- but didn’t involve Larry David! Cazzie shares what it feels like being the child of a famous father -- and they both discuss what’s next for them. These brilliant young women are taking Hollywood by storm on their own terms with their unique take on what it’s like to be in your 20’s in America today.The two met their first week at Emerson College and forged a friendship that has turned into a prolific creative partnership since graduating.Here is what critics had to say about this spotlight into the world of millennial break ups."(DAVID’S) BRITTLE, DEADPAN CHARISMA IS INNATELY WATCHABLE, AND THERE ARE FEW FULL-LENGTH SHOWS SUCCESSFULLY MINING THE COMPLEX NORMS AND PRESSURES OF SOCIAL-MEDIA ETIQUETTE THROUGH A COMEDIC LENS." — NY MAGA"CAZZIE DAVID MIGHT BE THE NEXT VOICE OF A GENERATION...SHE [REMI] IS NOT HERE TO IMPRESS YOU. AND WE'RE SERIOUSLY IMPRESSED." — REFINERY29"WHAT’S SO GREAT ABOUT EIGHTY-SIXED IS THAT IT NEVER FEELS LIKE IT’S TRYING TOO HARD. THE INTERNET IS FULL OF OVERLY AMBITIOUS WEB SERIES, BUT THIS ONE IS FULLY SELF-AWARE AND DELIGHTFULLY WRY." — DECIDER

Bill Camp, the Emmy and Tony nominated actor, has had an illustrious career on stage and in film for over three decades. His most recent turn as "Dennis Box" in HBO's highly acclaimed limited series "The Night Of " earned him an Emmy nomination for his compelling portrayal of an NYPD Detective in pursuit of the truth. Camp brought tremendous pathos and dimension to the role -- as he does to every role he plays. Beloved by some of the most accomplished directors of our time including Mike Nichols and Stephen Spielberg, Camp has become one of the most sought after actors working today. On this episode, Bill opens up to Ilana about his years of "deviant" behavior and how he weathered the storm. He also shares intimate and hilarious details of his courtship and ultimate marriage to actress, Elizabeth Marvel. Bill is best known for his Emmy Award nominated performance (Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series) in HBO's critically acclaimed limited series "The Night Of," starring alongside John Turturro and Riz Ahmed directed by Steve Zaillian and written by Richard Price. Bill is currently filming the "The Looming Tower," where he will portray FBI veteran Robert Chesney. The upcoming Hulu series in the based on Lawrence Wright’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that chronicles the events that led to the September 11 terrorist attacks. Bill recently shot the Francis Lawrence-directed spy thriller "Marble," based on Jason Matthew’s espionage novel. This film also marks his second time working with Steve Zaillian, who is attached as a producer on the Fox feature. Additionally, Bill filmed "The Land Of Steady Habits" both written and directed by Nicole Holofcener with Anthony Bregman of Likely Story producing. Bill also shot a pivotal role in "Molly’s Game" directed by Aaron Sorkin and co-starred alongside Jake Gyllenhaal and Carey Mulligan in "Wildlife," Paul Dano’s directorial debut. Other upcoming films include "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, "Woman Walks" Ahead directed by Susanna White, and Scott Cooper’s latest feature, "Hostiles." This will be his second time working with Cooper, as the duo previously collaborated on "Black Mass." Last year, Bill held key roles in "Midnight Special" and "Loving" (both from writer-director Jeff Nichols) as well as "Jason Bourne" directed by Paul Greengrass. Bill has also appeared in "Gold" for director Stephen Gaghan, "Aloha" for director Cameron Crowe, "Birdman" (Academy Award Winner, Best Picture) for director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, "Love & Mercy," "12 Years a Slave," "Lincoln," "Compliance," "Lawless," "Tamara Drewe" and "Public Enemies."On the small screen he has played recurring roles on "The Leftovers," "Manhattan," "Boardwalk Empire" and "Damages."A veteran of the stage, Bill received a Tony Award nomination for his performance as Reverend John Hale in Arthur Miller’s "The Crucible," directed by Ivo Van Hove and produced by Scott Rudin. He is an alumnus of The Juilliard School and recipient of several awards and honors, including the Obie, Elliot Norton, Drama Desk, and Boston Critics Association.

Gillian Pensavalle is the host of "The Hamilcast" podcast. Gillian started the podcast at the beginning of 2016 because of her love, passion and obsession with all things "Hamilton, An American Musical." Each week Gillian has conversations with members of the Hamilton community, theater luminaries, friends and Hamilton fans about all things ... Hamilton. Slowly Gillian's audience has grown and grown -- and it is now regarded as the "official" podcast of Hamilton by its cast members. In the summer of 2017, Lin Manuel Miranda recognized Gillian on twitter with his signature "I see you @TheHamilcast" and a conversation began -- a conversation that has culminated in a four hour dialogue between Lin and Gillian that has become known as #Lintoberfest on "The Hamilcast" podcast. Find out how it all evolved and unfolded on this exciting new episode of "Little Known Facts with Ilana Levine."A born and raised New Yorker, Gillian Pensavalle is a karaoke enthusiast who says hello to dogs on the street, but always asks permission first. She is a proud Ravenclaw and loyal to House Stark.Gillian is the creator, executive producer, and host of "The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast," the first Hamilton podcast to hit the airwaves in January of 2016, which has since earned the title of "The Official Hamilton Podcast" among cast members and has listeners in over 140 countries. Guests include over two dozen people involved in Hamilton including cast members, crew, musicians, and the man who started it all: Lin-Manuel Miranda. How lucky we are to be alive right now indeed.Gillian is also the co-creator and co-host of comedy podcast "True Crime Obsessed," with podcast maven Patrick Hinds. This smart, well-researched, respectful, and hilarious podcast received critical acclaim almost instantly thanks to the duo’s undeniable chemistry, nonstop passion, and zero tolerance policy for garbage people. Teaming up with her husband Michael Paul Smith, Gillian is the co-creator, producer, and star of "The Residuals," a successful comedy series based on the couple's the real-life auditioning for commercials in New York City. Guest stars include Horatio Sanz, Michael Torpey, and Emily Tarver.In the digital video world, Gillian has pitched, wrote, hosted, produced, and edited over 2,000 videos that have been distributed to over 12,000 partner sites including The Huffington Post, Hearst, AOLOn, MSN, Amazon, USA Today, and Roku. Topics included viral animal stories, dumb criminals, travel tips, "Game Of Thrones" and "Breaking Bad" recaps, and general pop culture. From telling a story straight to camera or editing text-only videos, Gillian’s pieces have amassed over tens of millions of views.With over ten years of experience in the entertainment industry, Gillian is a content creator through and through: she is an actor, voice-over artist, on-camera host, podcaster, editor, writer, SAG signatory producer, and showrunner.Twitter: @GillianWithaG / @TheHamilcastInstagram: @GillianWithaG / @TheHamilcast

Allison Janney, a seven-time Primetime Emmy Award winner, had dreams of becoming an Olympic figure skater. That dream ended when, at age 17, she ran through a sliding glass window. The injury was serious, and, suddenly Allison's future goals shifted. She found herself at Kenyon College and she became a theater major. While at Kenyon Allison was discovered by Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward who had come to the college to direct a play at their alma mater. They encouraged Janney to go to NYC and pursue a career in acting professionally. What happened after that is the subject of this funny and intimate conversation with host Ilana Levine, a dear friend of Allison's. The two met and became fast friends when Ilana was starring in the HBO series "Tanner 88" with a mutual friend. Allison walks us through her audition for "The West Wing" and opens up about why the recent loss of her brother makes starring on the CBS hit show "Mom" all the more important for her during this emotional time.The incredibly versatile Allison Janney has taken her place among a select group of actors who combine a leading lady’s profile with a character actor’s art of performance. Currently starring alongside Anna Faris in the CBS/Chuck Lorre sitcom, “Mom,” Janney also received rave reviews for her turn as ‘Margaret Scully’ on Showtime’s groundbreaking drama “Masters of Sex.” Janney won Emmys for both roles in the same year; a rare feat in Emmy history. She won a second Emmy for “Mom” the following year, bringing her total number of ATAS statues to seven. She was also recently honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In addition, Janney has continually taken on movie roles during her hiatus weeks from the sitcom. She’s completed filming “I, Tonya” with Margot Robbie for Miramax Films. Janney also appeared in two of the previous summer’s biggest box office titles: the adorably animated “Minions” and “Spy” with Melissa McCarthy. Prior feature work includes “The Duff,” Jason Bateman’s directorial debut “Bad Words,” the Dreamworks’ animated film “Mr. Peabody & Sherman,” and “The Way, Way Back” with Steve Carell and Toni Collette. Additionally she co-starred in the much anticipated feature film "The Help" based on the best-selling novel of the same name, winning the Ensemble awards from the Screen Actors Guild, National Board of Review and the Broadcast Film Critics. For her role in Todd Solondz's film "Life During Wartime" she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress by the Spirit Awards. She received another Spirit Award nomination for her work in the independent feature “Our Very Own,” and starred opposite Meryl Streep in “The Hours,” which received a SAG Award nomination for Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture. Other feature credits include the Academy Award winning film “American Beauty” (for which she won a SAG Award for Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture) as well as “Nurse Betty,” “How to Deal,” “Drop Dead Gorgeous,” “10 Things I Hate About You,” “Primary Colors,” “The Ice Storm,” “Six Days Seven Nights,” “The Object of My Affection,” and “Big Night.” On TV, she is renowned for her starring role in the acclaimed NBC series "The West Wing," where she won a remarkable four Emmy Awards and four SAG Awards for her portrayal of White House Press Secretary ‘CJ Cregg.’ She made her Broadway debut in Noel Coward’s “Present Laughter” for which she earned the Outer Critics Circle Award and Clarence Derwent Award. She also appeared in Arthur Miller’s "A View from the Bridge," receiving her first Tony Award nomination and winning the Outer Critics Circle Award as well as the musical "9 to 5," Janney made her return to Broadway earlier this year in the revival of John Guare’s “Six Degrees of Separation."

Celia Keenan-Bolger, a native of Detroit, Michigan, has made a very impressive mark in the Broadway community. A Tony nominee beloved for her talent, kindness and political activism, Celia has moved effortlessly between musicals and straight plays. She burst onto the scene with her role in "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee." Shortly thereafter she captivated audiences as Laura in "The Glass Menagerie," showed her comedic genius in "Peter and the Starcatcher," and moved us to tears when she starred in "Les Miserables" (a childhood dream).In this intimate episode Celia discusses how she handles the highs and lows that inevitably come along with a life in the theater. Married to actor John Ellison Conlee, Celia shares what it's like for two actors in a marriage and she opens up about the joys and surprises of parenthood. Celia also touches on her early years -- including her time with Sutton Foster in the children's theatrical troupe "The Peter Pan Players." Listeners will feel closer to -- and more in awe of -- this deeply talented, and equally kind, award-winning actress.CELIA KEENAN-BOLGER- Broadway: Glass Menagerie (Tony Award Nomination, Drama Desk Award, Dorothy Loudon Award), Peter And The Starcatcher, (Tony Nom, Drama Desk Nom, Drama League Nom), The Cherry Orchard, Les Miserables (Drama Desk nom.), The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Tony Nom, Theatre World Award, Drama Desk Award for Best Ensemble), Off Broadway: Tumacho (Clubbed Thumb) The Oldest Boy (Lincoln Center Theater), Merrily We Roll Along (City Center Encores), A Small Fire (Playwrights Horizons), Bachelorette (2econd Stage). TV: Louie, The Good Wife, Nurse Jackie, Good Behavior, Elementary, Blue Bloods, Law & Order SVU, Heartland. Film: The Visit, Mariachi Gringo, Breakable You, Diane (upcoming). Celia is a graduate of The University Of Michigan.

Julianne Moore, the Academy Award winning actress, spends time with Ilana talking about her nomad childhood in a military family, her early years in NYC waitressing, and her first break -- being cast on a soap opera playing twins.In the 90's as the indie film world took off so did her career and she talks in depth about the roles she chooses and how she approaches them. A star who has appeared in over 70 films Julie, as she is known to friends, has remained grounded because of her devotion to her husband and children. Raising her family in New York City has been a way to remain connected to a life of normalcy although her marriage to director Bart Freundlich, has made filmmaking a family business. Julianne and Bart met while making his film "The Myth of Fingerprints" together and it's a love story that Julianne tells in great detail on the podcast. Over the course of an hour Ilana and Julianne talk about the films that made Julianne famous, the pressure on actresses to look a certain way, the paparazzi and its impact on her family, how she decides on doing a role that has nudity and her ability to make the transition so elegantly from being herself to making the leap into playing the character once "action" is called on the set of a film. This is Julianne Moore -- up close and personal.Julianne Moore is an Academy Award and Emmy winning actor, and the first American woman to be awarded top acting prizes at the Cannes, Berlin, and Venice film festivals. She is also a NY-Times best selling author, for her children’s book series Freckleface Strawberry. Julianne is on the Advisory Council of The Children's Health Fund, is a supporter of the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance and in 2015, became founding chair of the Everytown for Gun Safety Creative Council, a creative community established to help amplify the movement to end gun violence in America. In 2017, she will be seen in the upcoming films KINGSMAN 2: THE GOLDEN CIRCLE, WONDERSTRUCK, and SUBURBICON. She lives with her family in New York City.

Brian d'Arcy James (award winning actor) originated the role of King George in "Hamilton," The Broadway musical. He has starred in over 14 Broadway shows and just as many film and tv shows. Among them, the Academy Award winning film "Spotlight," "13 Reasons Why," "Smash," "Unabomber," "Ghost Town," and many more upcoming projects.In this candid conversation, Brian shares with Ilana the tough choice he had to make when the opportunity to star on Broadway in "Something Rotten" was presented at the same time "Hamilton" was going into rehearsal for it's Public Theater run. This and other stories about his life in the theater make for one of the most compelling and hilarious episodes of "Little Known Facts."Brian dʼArcy James is an award-winning theater, film, and television actor as well as a recording artist. Hailed recently as “one of the most celebrated actors of his generation in both straight plays and musicals” (Jeremy Gerard, Deadline), Brian is a three-time Tony nominee, and an Obie and Drama Desk Award winner for his varied and extensive work in the theater on Broadway and off-Broadway. Brian reprised his award-winning role as King George III in Lin-Manuel Mirandaʼs musical HAMILTON at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway. He originated the role of King George (“played with vaudevillian brilliance”—Ben Brantley, The New York Times) in the sold-out Off-Broadway run of Hamilton at The Public Theater. In 2015, immediate following Hamilton, Brian starred in the Broadway musical SOMETHING ROTTEN, for which he was nominated for a 2015 Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, Outer Critics Circle Award, and Drama League Distinguished Performance Award.In film, Brian starred in the 2016 Academy Award–winning Best Picture SPOTLIGHT, alongside Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, and Rachel McAdams as the four-member “Spotlight” columnists for the Boston Globe. Brian was awarded the 2016 SAG Award, Critics Choice Award, Gotham Award and the Independent Spirit’s Robert Altman Award for Best Ensemble for his portrayal of Matt Carroll. 2017 proved to be a busy year with the spring premiere of the Netflix series THIRTEEN REASONS WHY, in which Brian co-stars with Kate Walsh, followed by his appearance in Discovery Channel’s Manhunt:UNABOMBER miniseries. Additional credits include guest starring roles in THE GOOD WIFE, THE BIG C and PERSON OF INTEREST, among many others. A veteran of the stage with more than a dozen Broadway credits to his name, highlights include his Tony award nominated performances for starring roles in SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS and SHREK THE MUSICAL, as well as roles in Broadway plays such as MACBETH, TIME STANDS STILL and LIEUTENANT OF INISHMORE. Off Broadway highlights include his Obie winning solo performance of THE GOOD THIEF, Drama Desk nominations for GIANT and THE WILD PARTY along with originating roles in NEXT TO NORMAL and FLOYD COLLINS, among others. As a recording artist, Brian has a Grammy nomination for his performance on the Broadway Cast Album of SOMETHING ROTTEN. His solo Christmas album FROM CHRISTMAS EVE TO CHRISTMAS MORN features holiday classics along with three original songs including the popular song “Michigan Christmas.” Brian dʼArcy James resides in New York City with his wife and daughter. He has supported and performed many times for an organization in his hometown of Saginaw, Michigan, called the Field Neurosciences Institute (FNI). The mission of the FNI is the prevention, early diagnosis, care and cure of neurological diseases, disorders and injuries.

Brendan McDonald is the co-creator and executive producer of "WTF" with Marc Maron. He is an Emmy-winning producer and veteran of television, radio and digital media. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son.Brendan McDonald, Emmy Award winner and co-creator/producer of "WTF" with Marc Maron, discusses the evolution of their ground-breaking podcast and how they made history when President Obama came on the show. Brendan grew up in a family devoted to the arts and the seeds were planted at an early age to appreciate and create art with integrity. His own performance background and his encyclopedic knowledge and obsession with "Saturday Night Live" all played a part in his becoming the co creator of "WTF." He met Marc Maron in the early days of Air America when they were hired to create a live radio show together and it was clear to Brendan that Marc was the next Howard Stern. As a kid, Brendan performed in school plays but he understood early on what it would take to chase a career as a performer. So he set his sights on producing and he has done so for decades working with some of the biggest talents in news, but with Marc and the 'WTF" podcast, he has gained international recognition as a pioneer in the world of podcasting. His is a great success story where a labor of love and a passion for hard work has made something uniquely special. Together with Marc Maron, he has written and edited a book creating an oral history of life by weaving together stories from the podcast called 'Waiting for the Punch."

At 23, actor Ben Platt won the Tony Award for the physically and emotionally demanding role of Evan Hansen in the Tony Award winning musical, "Dear Evan Hansen." Platt has said in order to take on such a demanding role he lives a monkish existence. As long as he is performing the role everything he does on stage and off is in service of the play. He has changed his diet, works carefully with a vocal coach, physical therapist and even endures the ancient form of alternative medicine known as "cupping." In this intimate conversation with Ilana Levine, host of Little Known Facts, he describes his childhood, his lifelong passion for musical theater, his love of Judaism, family, sexuality, what he learned from Meryl Streep about acting and more never heard before details about this uniquely gifted rising star.BEN PLATT originated the title role in "Dear Evan Hansen" to critical acclaim (Obie Award, Outer Critics Circle and Drama League nominations) and won the 2017 Tony Award for his Broadway performance. Platt was the original Elder Cunningham in the Chicago production of "The Book of Mormon" and reprised the role on Broadway (dir. Trey Parker and Casey Nicholaw). Film: Benji Applebaum in "Pitch Perfect" and "Pitch Perfect 2," "Ricki and the Flash" (dir. Jonathan Demme), "Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk" (dir. Ang Lee), "Drunk Parents" (dir. Fred Wolf). National Tours: "Caroline, or Change" (directed by George C. Wolfe). Regional credits include "Dear Evan Hansen" (Arena Stage), "The Black Suits" (Barrington Stage Company), "The Power of Duff" (dir. Peter DuBois/New York Stage and Film), "Dead End" (dir. Nicholas Martin/Ahmanson Theatre), :The Music Man," "Mame," "Camelot," and "The Sound of Music" (dir. Gordon Hunt/Hollywood Bowl).

Jen Rudin, author of “Confessions of a Casting Director,” offers listeners a unique behind the scenes experience of the casting process. A child actress herself, Jen shares tips and stories for both the seasoned actor and young professionals, on how to best navigate the often harrowing and unruly process of auditions. In this funny, candid and insightful interview, Jen explains the process of auditions from the perspective of the casting director. Learn why going in and doing the best you can is always better than not taking advantage of every opportunity. Even when the call comes in the night before...Jen Rudin is an award-winning casting director who began her thirty-year career in show business as a child actor at age eight. As a casting executive at the Walt Disney Company, Jen conducted extensive talent searches all over the United States, identifying and hiring actors who went on to star on Broadway in "The Lion King," "Mary Poppins" and "The Little Mermaid" and in beloved Disney movies like "The Incredibles," "The Princess and the Frog," "Chicken Little" and "Brother Bear." Her company, Jen Rudin Casting, casts projects in New York and Los Angeles. She is the author of "Confessions of a Casting Director."

Jerry Mitchell, Tony Award winning director and choreographer, is a living legend! He is the creator of Broadway Bares, a burlesque show that has raised millions of dollars for Broadway Cares -- an organization devoted to supporting people living with HIV. His midwestern upbringing and his talent uncovered at a young age are all part of his unique and inspiring success story. JERRY MITCHELL (Director/Choreographer) is currently represented on Broadway as the Director of the Gloria Estefan bio-musical, On Your Feet, having previously received TONY Awards in recognition of his choreography for the 2013 TONY-Award winning Best Musical, Kinky Boots, for which he was also nominated as Director and the 2005 revival of La Cage Aux Folles. He was nominated for an Olivier Award for his choreography in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, which he also directed and co-produced in the West End. In the 35 preceding years, Jerry has been involved with over 50 Broadway, Off-Broadway, West End and touring productions, starting as a dancer for Agnes De Mille in Brigadoon and thereafter assisting Michael Bennett and Jerome Robbins. His Broadway debut as Choreographer, You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, was followed by The Full Monty (TONY nomination), The Rocky Horror Show, Hairspray (TONY nomination), Gypsy (starring Bernadette Peters), Never Gonna Dance (TONY nomination), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (TONY nomination), Imaginary Friends, Legally Blonde (TONY nomination), which he also directed, Catch Me If You Can and Kinky Boots (also currently running in London, Australia, Japan, Korea and on a U.S. tour, with Germany up next.) Jerry’s memorable film work includes In and Out, Scent of a Woman, Jeffrey, Drop DeadGorgeous and Camp. For television, he recently choreographed the NBC live production of Hairspray, as well as several seasons of TheRosie O’Donnell Show, was nominated for an Emmy for his choreography created for The Drew Carey Show, was featured as the host of Step It Up and Dance and appeared in his role as Director/Choreographer of Legally Blonde in The Search for Elle Woodsand of Peepshow in Ice Loves Coco. Twenty-seven years ago, Jerry conceived and created Broadway Bares, a comedy burlesque show performed annually for the charity Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. He continues to serve as Executive Producer of Broadway Bares, with a book, website and satellite productions in Fire Island Pines, Las Vegas (Peepshow, which enjoyed a five-year run of continuous performances) and London (West End Bares). Most recently, Jerry received the Drama League’s Founders’ Award for Excellence in Directing and the George Abbott Lifetime Achievement Award from his peers, the latter being especially meaningful to him in that he was directed by the 96 year old Mr. Abbott in the Broadway revival of On Your Toes. A native of Paw Paw, Michigan, Jerry attended Webster Conservatory in St. Louis, from which he received an Honorary Doctorate.

Nikka Graff Lanzarone comes from a long line of Broadway performers and Tony Award winners. Born and raised in Los Angeles, she spent her youth figuring out how to get to New York City. Nikka was always clear from a young age that she needed to live where there was a Broadway and to Broadway she arrived. Cast in the Pedro Almodovar musical, "Women on the Verge," Nikka quickly became a beloved member of the Broadway community and her one woman show, "Hero Worship," made her an immediate darling of the Cabaret world. She and Mo Brady co-host "The Ensemblist," a Broadway podcast that shines a light on all the people who make a Broadway show happen, both on stage and off.Nikka Graff Lanzarone is a New York City-based performer, writer, podcaster, cat lady, lover of the Internet, wife, and nerd. She’s appeared on Broadway in Chicago (Velma Kelly)andWomen on the Verge… (Marisa) and Off-Broadway in Sweet Charity (Ursula, New Group) Hello Again (The Whore, Transport Group), Zorba (Encores!), and Seussical (Lucille Lortel Theatre). Favorite regional credits include My Paris (Long Wharf), The Jungle Book (Goodman/Huntington Theatres), A Chorus Line(Paper Mill Playhouse) and Into the Woods (Baltimore Centerstage/Westport Country Playhouse). She also did a stint as a Vegas showgirl in Jerry Mitchell’s Peep Show. Film: Bandslam. TV: “Unforgettable,” “Smash,”“Live from Lincoln Center.” Recordings: “Women on the Verge…” and “Seussical” cast albums. Her podcast, The Ensemblist, is changing the conversation about what it means to make a successful life in the theatre. Follow @nikkalanz on social media. More: nikka-graff-lanzarone.com.

Alex Gansa, creator of "Homeland," takes us on a behind the scenes journey of his career as an award winning writer in Hollywood. He and Co-creator Howard Gordon, began their professional lives in out west as Test Prep instructors for the children of Hollywood elite. From there they went on to write for television. Hear how these two young upstarts went from wide eyed hopefuls to being two of the most successful writers and show runners working today. Gansa shares deep personal stories of his struggles and successes and if you love "Homeland" you will learn about how the show came together, casting stories and never before heard anecdotes from the set of the Showtime award winning series.Alex Gansa is the showrunner, co-creator and executive producer of Showtime’s thriller HOMELAND, starring Claire Danes and Mandy Patinkin. HOMELAND premiered in October 2011 to critical acclaim and the highest debut ratings for a freshman drama on the network. HOMELAND won the 2012 and 2013 Golden Globe for Best Television Series, and a 2012 Emmy in six different categories including Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series and Best Drama Series. Additional honors include two 2012 WGA awards in the categories of Best New Series and Episodic Drama, 2013 Producers Guild Award, the Peabody Award, Television Critics’ Association Award, Critics’ Choice Television Award and was named one of AFI’s Top Ten Programs of the Year in both 2011 and 2012.Gansa previously served as an Executive Producer on the long-running 24, the CBS series NUMB3RS, and DAWSON'S CREEK, and as a Consulting Producer on ENTOURAGE. His other work includes the hit series THE X FILES for Fox, SISTERS for NBC, and the critically acclaimed series MAXIMUM BOB that he created for ABC.Gansa lives in Los Angeles.

Gus Birney, the youngest actress to date on the podcast, gained her reputation as the new "it girl" with her starring role in the prestige cable drama, "The Mist." At 17 she has already walked the runway for Kanye West during fashion week and co-starred with Marisa Tomei in the critically acclaimed production of "The Rose Tattoo." The daughter of Tony award winning actor Reed Birney and OITNB star Constance Schulman, she shares with great candor the day to day life of growing up in a household with actors who sometimes worked and sometimes didn't, why high school wasn't a great fit for her, and how a 3a.m. trip to a downtown NYC salon is normal in the world of modeling. Gus shares her struggles with the constant reality of being the youngest person in an ensemble and also shares how she negotiates her creative desires with the downtime that actors face and the trauma and hilarity of self taping with her mother -- all of which make for a hilarious and poignant interview with this remarkable young talent who is a moviestar on the rise.Gus Birney was born and raised on the upper west side in NYC. Went to the professional performing arts school for high school. Her first professional job was one of the Clean and Clear girls for their commercials. She guest starred on "Chicago Med," played Marissa Tomei's daughter in :The Rose Tattoo" at Williamstown, opened Kanye West's show at NY Fashion week last fall and just recently wrapped the first season of "The Mist." Based on Stephen King's novella (was also a movie) and shot for four months in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Gus is a songwriter and has performed at The Bitter End, Rockwood Music Hall and Arleen's Grocery. She is scheduled to shoot a new Sarah Jessica Parker film in the summer of 2017.

Ryan Raddon known as Kaskade to his millions of fans is a world renown Electronic Dance Music DJ and chart topping artist. In this episode of "Little Known Facts" he sits down with Ilana and discusses his life as a trailblazer in the house music world and describes the choices he has to make in order to balance his life as a family man and a devout Mormon and his life on the road ten months out of the year. From growing up in his close knit family in Chicago, the birthplace of House Music, to his international fame as one of the most successful DJ's in music history - this is a one of a kind conversation where Ryan reveals things about himself he has not discussed in previous interviews.Multi GRAMMY Award-nominated singer, songwriter, producer and remixer Kaskade is a titan in the dance music world, and a groundbreaking innovator in the music industry as a whole. Bending the curve by which his contemporaries measure themselves, Kaskade has an unprecedented string of “firsts”. He was the first DJ to land a Las Vegas residency, the first ever solo electronic dance artist to sell-out both Navy Pier in Chicago, and the Staples Center in Los Angeles, and the first dance artist to perform and sell out at the Los Angeles Convention Center in its 45-year history with a career-defining solo headline date in front of 30,000 fans. A three-time Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival veteran, Kaskade made history in 2015 where he was the only electronic musician to headline the festival and drew the two largest crowds in its storied sixteen-year existence. Crowned by The New York Times as “the new face of electronic dance music,” Kaskade has been bridging the gap between old school music purists and a new generation of music lovers. Relentlessly touring the world and playing to tens of millions people around the globe, he has been in the trenches for over a decade, laying the groundwork for a titanic musical and cultural shift. With nine studio albums and five GRAMMY nominations to his name, Kaskade’s global reach is ever-expanding. He has headlined every major North American festival, and was recently inducted into Pete tong’s Hall of fame, and sold out London’s The Steelyard on his most recent UK date. His single “Fakin It” was first premiered in the UK when Kaskade went back to back with Danny Howard on his primetime “Dance Anthems” slot on BBC Radio 1. While Kaskade’s handwriting is all over the history of electronic music, his influence today is at an all-time high. His latest full length album, "Automatic" [Warner Bros. Records/Arkade] claimed the #2 spot on the Billboard Dance /Electronic Albums Chart. Automatic commanded a Top 15 placement on the U.S. Digital Chart, as well as amassing over 50 million streams on Spotify in less than a year’s time. His live set from Ultra Music Festival 2016 has garnered over 1.9 million views in a matter of months. (Watch here) Kaskade continues his reign in Las Vegas with an unprecedented mult-venue long term residency for Hakkasan Group, and his social media reach continues to connect him with his audience in an authentic and powerful way. Rolling Stone asserts, “Kaskade represents an intensely positive side of dance music culture”, another cornerstone in the foundation that sets him apart."

Tony Award Winner, Ben Platt and Academy Award nominee, Lucas Hedges share the podcast stage on this episode of "Little Known Facts with Ilana Levine". These two huge stars are old friends and share their history, passions, struggles and triumphs with great candor on this special episode. Go behind the scenes backstage at "Dear Evan Hansen" and listen to Lucas share what he does before he performs. The two talk about how they handle fame, family, pressure, next projects and what they do for fun-which may surprise you!Ben Platt - Ben Platt originated the title role in Dear Evan Hansen to critical acclaim (Obie Award, Outer Critics Circle and Drama League nominations). Platt was the original Elder Cunningham in the Chicago production of The Book of Mormon and reprised the role on Broadway (dir. Trey Parker and Casey Nicholaw). Film: Benji Applebaum in Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2, Ricki and the Flash (dir. Jonathan Demme), Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (dir. Ang Lee), Drunk Parents (dir. Fred Wolf). ŒNational Tours: Caroline, or Change (directed by George C. Wolfe). Regional credits include Dear Evan Hansen (Arena Stage), The Black Suits (Barrington Stage Company), The Power of Duff (dir. Peter DuBois/New York Stage and Film), Dead End (dir. Nicholas Martin/Ahmanson Theatre), The Music Man, Mame, Camelot, and The Sound of Music (dir. Gordon Hunt/Hollywood Bowl).Lucas Hedges - As a child, Lucas Hedges made his feature film debut as an extra in his father's film Dan in Real Life. He went on to play major roles in Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom, Jason Reitman's Labor Day, Terry Gilliam's The Zero Theorem, Michael Cuesta's Kill the Messenger, Kenneth Lonergan’s Manchester By The Sea, Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird, and Martin McDonagh’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. His received critical acclaim for his role in the play, Yen. He was nominated for over 20 awards for his role in Manchester By The Sea and won multiple awards for his gorgeous work in the film.

Alan Alda has been a household name for decades. He is a rare breed of celebrity -- down to earth, funny, kind and a deeply thoughtful human. He is an advocate for women's rights, a passionate devotee of science and an artist still fiercely committed to the craft of acting, writing and directing. On this episode of Little Known Facts, Alda shares very personal stories from his life. He discusses in heartbreaking detail growing up as the only child of a schizophrenic mother in a time when no one spoke of such things; he talks of his father who was a well known performer on the Burlesque circuit, someone who went on to international stardom only to go back to square one again and again. Alan Alda saw firsthand from an early age the great highs and lows of an acting career. Yet with the role of 'Hawkeye Pierce' on the groundbreaking, iconic hit television series M*A*S*H, Alda became a huge star He reinvents himself with every role and in his conversation with Ilana, he shares his process for creating a character and how to live in the moment. Listen as Alan share his insights on fame and how his passion for art, science, activism and family make him a deeply curious and mindful person.Alan Alda has earned international recognition as an actor, writer and director. In addition to The Aviator, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, Alda’s films include Crimes and Misdemeanors, Everyone Says I Love You, Flirting With Disaster, Manhattan Murder Mystery, And The Band Played On, Same Time, Next Year and California Suite, as well as The Seduction of Joe Tynan, which he wrote, and The Four Seasons, Sweet Liberty, A New Life and Betsy’s Wedding, all of which he wrote and directed. Most recently, his film appearances have included Tower Heist, Wanderlust, and Steven Spielberg’s Bridge of Spies. In 2016, he appeared as Uncle Pete in Louis CK’s groundbreaking web series Horace and Pete. He has the distinction of being nominated for an Oscar, a Tony, and an EMMY - and publishing a bestselling book - all in the same year (2005). In all, he has received 6 EMMYs and has been nominated for an EMMY 34 times. Alda played Hawkeye Pierce on the classic television series M*A*S*H, and wrote and directed many of the episodes. His EMMY nominations include performances in 2015 for The Blacklist, in 2009 for 30 Rock, in 2006 for West Wing (for which he received an EMMY), and in 1999 for ER. In 1994 he was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame. He hosted the award winning series Scientific American Frontiers on PBS for eleven years.On Broadway, he has appeared as the physicist Richard Feynman in the play QED. He starred in the first American production of the international hit play ART. He has received 3 Tony nominations. In addition to his nomination for the revival of Glengarry Glen Ross, he was also nominated for the Tony Award for his performances in Neil Simon's Jake’s Women and the musical The Apple Tree. Other appearances on Broadway include The Owl and the Pussycat, Purlie Victorious and Fair Game for Lovers for which he received a Theatre World Award.He helped found the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science and is the author of a play entitled Radiance – the Passion of Marie Curie. His wife, Arlene, is the author of nineteen books. They have three daughters and eight grandchildren.

In honor of these two brilliant actors and their 2017 Tony Award nominations here are interviews with the star of Falsettos and Girls, Andrew Rannells, and the star of Dear Evan Hansen and Pitch Perfect, Ben Platt. Andrew Rannells - Andrew Rannells plays Elijah on the hit HBO series, Girls. He is also known for his work as Elder Price in the 2011 Broadway musical The Book of Mormon, which earned him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical. As a featured soloist on the musical's Original Broadway Cast Recording, he won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. His other Broadway credits include Jersey Boys, Hairspray, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Falsettos. He portrayed King George III in Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical Hamilton on Broadway. Ben Platt - Ben Platt originated the title role in Dear Evan Hansen to critical acclaim (Obie Award, Outer Critics Circle and Drama League nominations). Platt was the original Elder Cunningham in the Chicago production of The Book of Mormon and reprised the role on Broadway (dir. Trey Parker and Casey Nicholaw). Film: Benji Applebaum in Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2, Ricki and the Flash (dir. Jonathan Demme), Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (dir. Ang Lee), Drunk Parents (dir. Fred Wolf). ŒNational Tours: Caroline, or Change (directed by George C. Wolfe). Regional credits include Dear Evan Hansen (Arena Stage), The Black Suits (Barrington Stage Company), The Power of Duff (dir. Peter DuBois/New York Stage and Film), Dead End (dir. Nicholas Martin/Ahmanson Theatre), The Music Man, Mame, Camelot, and The Sound of Music (dir. Gordon Hunt/Hollywood Bowl).

Laura Linney and Cynthia Nixon are both nominated for 2017 Tony Awards for their roles in The Little Foxes. These two stars of stage and screen switch roles nightly which is a stunning achievement, especially because the women they play are polar opposites. Here are my interviews with Cynthia and Laura, revisited in honor of their nominations and their beautiful work in Lillian Hellman's Tony Award nominated play.Laura Liney - Laura Linney is an American actress who works in film, television and theatre. Her film work includes Genius, Nocturnal Animals and The Dinner. Most recently she has been seen in Mr. Holmes, You Can Count On Me, Kinsey, The Savagaes, The Fifth Estate, Hyde Park on Hudson, The Squid and the Whale, Mystic River, Absolute Power, The Truman Show, Primal Fear, The Mothman Prophecies, Love Actually, The House of Mirth, The Details and Congo, among others. She starred in and produced the Showtime Series The Big C for four seasons for which she won a few awards, as she did for her portrayal of Abigail Adams in the HBO miniseries John Adams directed by Tom Hooper. Early in her career she starred as Mary Ann Singleton in Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City series, a job for which she continues to be most grateful and proud. She appeared as Kelsey Grammer’s final girlfriend in the last six episodes of Frasier, was directed by Stanley Donen in Love Letters, and starred opposite Joanne Woodward in Blindspot. She has appeared in many Broadway productions, most notably Time Stands Still and Sight Unseen both directed by Daniel Sullivan and written by Donald Margulies, and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible directed by Richard Eyre opposite Liam Neeson with whom she has worked many times. Other plays include Six Degrees of Separation, Honour, Uncle Vanya, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Holiday and The Seagull. She has been nominated three times for the Academy Award, three times for the Tony Award, once for a BAFTA Award, and five times for the Golden Globe. She has won one SAG Award, one National Board of Review Award, two Golden Globes and four Emmy Awards. She holds two honorary Doctorates from her alma maters, Brown University and The Juilliard School. Cynthia Nixon - Cynthia Ellen Nixon is an American actress, known for her portrayal of Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series Sex and the City for which she won the 2004 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She reprised the role in the films Sex and the City and Sex and the City 2. Her other film appearances include Amadeus, The Pelican Brief, Baby's Day Out, Little Manhattan, 5 Flights Up, Stockholm, Pennsylvania, James White and A Quiet Passion. Nixon made her Broadway debut in the 1980 revival of The Philadelphia Story. Other Broadway credits include The Real Thing, Hurlyburly, Indiscretions and The Women. She played Eleanor Roosevelt in the HBO TV film Warm Springs. She went on to win the 2006 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for the original production of Rabbit Hole, a second Emmy Award in 2008 for her guest role in Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, and a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album in 2009 for An Inconvenient Truth. In 2011, she played Michele Davis in the TV film Too Big to Fail, before returning to Broadway in the 2012 play Wit.

Andy Cohen, host of Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live and bestselling author, takes Ilana behind the scenes of his life. From the Real Housewives franchise to his friendship and show with Anderson Cooper, listeners will feel like a fly on the wall as these two old friends catch up. Ilana first met Andy when they both came to New York City in their 20’s and found themselves on the beach invited their by mutual friend, the Tony Award winner John Benjamin Hickey. Andy recounts his youth in St. Louis, coming out to friends and family, his views on marijuana, the loss of dear friend Natasha Richardson, and his rise in the entertainment business.

Octavia Spencer, Academy Award winner, shares her journey from a small town in Alabama to a huge career in Hollywood. Raised by a single mom and one of 7 children, hers is a story of perseverance and passion. One of Hollywood’s most sought-after talents, Octavia Spencer has become a familiar fixture on both television and the silver screen. Her critically acclaimed performance as Minny in 2011’s The Help won her the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award, BAFTA Award, and Golden Globe Award, among numerous other accolades. Throughout the past year she has taken on many different characters, such as Johanna in Allegiant and Miss Harris in The Great Gilly Hopkins, as well as lending her voice to the character of Mrs. Otterton in Zootopia. Octavia can be seen in the critically acclaimed Hidden Figures, a drama that follows the true story of three African American women who were instrumental to NASA catching up in the Space Race. Octavia’s performance as Dorothy Vaughan has earned her SAG, Golden Globe, NAACP Image Award, and Academy Award nominations to date. Spencer also stars in The Shack and Gifted.

Orfeh, the Tony nominated Broadway star, shares incredible stories of her life growing up in NYC, her godmother, Cher, and marriage to Broadway star Andy Karl. Hear how (and why) she handles the non stop discussion about her unique name. Orfeh is known for her astonishing vocal gifts that Seth Rudetsky is “Obsessed” with! -- and describes how as a young kid she knew she wanted to be a pop star and found her way into a Bubble Yum commercial and never looked back. From jingles to worldwide tours as a pop star with her duo “Or n More” to Broadway -- be a fly on the wall for this thrill of a ride with this powerhouse actress.Broadway: Paulette in Legally Blonde: The Musical (Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle Award nominations, Broadway.com Audience Award), Saturday Night Fever, Fascinating Rhythm, Footloose. Off Broadway: Love, Loss, and What I Wore, The Great American Trailer Park Musical, Love, Janis. TV/Film: Sleeping with the Fishes (with Gina Rodgriguez), Across the Universe, Film U, L&O CI, Sex and the City, Chappelle's Show. She has performed at Lincoln Center with her husband, Olivier Award winner and Tony nominee Andy Karl, and in numerous Broadway benefits including Hair for the Actors Fund (Grammy nomination). Her extensive recording career includes music with the '90s pop group Or-N-More, she has performed with many music icons from legends the O'Jays to Cissy Houston. Her solo CD, "What Do You Want From Me" and latest single, "Forget My Name" are available on iTunes. Twitter: @official_orfeh

Christopher Hanke, star of stage and screen, shares personal stories of triumph and frustration that actors experience every day, on this hilarious and heartfelt episode of Little Known Facts. Originally slated to go to medical school Christopher deferred to give acting a shot. Quickly after arriving in New York City he booked a job and never looked back. Be a fly on the wall as Christopher and Ilana share stories, sing, laugh and go deep! Christopher is an actor and theater nerd. He most recently starred in the hit one-man comedy Buyer & Cellar in New York and Toronto, to rave reviews and the new play Perfect Arrangement at Primary Stages in NYC. Before that he ate the scenery as Bud Frump in the Broadway revival of How to Succeed… Other Broadway credits include: Rent (Mark), Cry-Baby (Baldwin)and In My Life (JT). Additionally, Hanke played Tommy Boatwright in director George C. Wolfe’s Tony Award-winning production of The Normal Heart at Arena Stage in DC and starred as Claude in the Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park production of Hair in NYC. Television is also Christopher’s jam. He currently plays Devon on the new comedy series Odd Mom Out on BRAVO in it’s second season AND plays Fabian in this new last season of Devious Maids. He was series regular Ryan Abbot on the CBS medical drama Three Rivers; had a recurring role of Stuart on HBOs Big Love; and has guest starred on Nashville, Major Crimes, The Client List, and Brothers & Sisters. Hanke also studies & performs improv with the UCB Theatre in LA/NY in hopes to make people laugh. In his spare time, Christopher works as a professional guest teaching artist for Broadway Dreams Foundation, Broadway Artist Alliance, Making It On Broadway, and Broadway Workshop. He teaches master classes all around the country and works with BFA Musical Theater programs and BFA Acting programs at various universities. He is very very passionate about coaching high school seniors looking to audition for college acting and musical theater programs. He has a dog named Grover. Not after the muppet. Or the President.

Emily Skeggs, Tony and Grammy nominated actress, shares her life story on this compelling episode of Little Known Facts. At a young age she is already a magnificent talent as well as a voice in the world of political activism. She has taken on difficult acting roles and manages to make it seem effortless. She describes the joy and responsibility she feels when playing real life heroes. Hear her journey from working at kid's birthday parties to landing a role on Broadway and taking the theater community by storm. She is warm and kind and funny and will leave you wishing she was your best friend. Listen to this inspiring actress who is just beginning what promises to be a huge and important career.In December, Emily wrapped one of the lead roles in Desiree Akhavan’s feature film The Miseducation of Cameron Post, based on the popular YA novel. Emily also stars in Dustin Lance Black's eight-part miniseries When We Rise for Gus van Sant, airing on ABC. Emily was nominated for duel Tony and Grammy Awards as the lead in Sam Gold’s hit musical Fun Home on Broadway, all the while shooting a recurring role on Brannan Braga’s series Salem.

J. Smith-Cameron, star of stage and screen, grew up in the south as Jeannie Smith. How she went from a small town Southern life to taking the New York theater community by storm and her marriage to the Oscar nominated screenwriter and playwright Kenneth Lonergan, is revealed in this very intimate conversation. From the first day of shooting the "Rectify" pilot to the controversial film "Margaret," J. Is candid about her process and both the joys and struggles of the life of an artist.J. Smith-Cameron has appeared in numerous theatre productions Off and On Broadway. Highlights include "Our Country’s Good" (TonyNomination), "Sarah" (Drama Desk nomination), "Fuddy Meers" (Outer Critics and Drama Desk Nominations) and "As Bees in Honey Drown" (Obie award, Drama Desk and Outer Critics nominations). Recent credits include "Sweet and Sad" (Drama Desk and Obie Awards) by Richard Nelson at the Public, as well as "That Hopey Changey Thing" and "Sorry," by the same author. Also "Midsummer Night’s Dream" at La Jolla Playhouse and "The Starry Messenger," by Kenneth Lonergan, at the New Group. J. plays Melinda Mickens in HBO's “True Blood”. J. stars opposite Anna Paquin in Kenneth Lonergan's film "Margaret," which won her the Best Supporting Actress Award for the International Cinephile Society.

Danny Burstein has been a Tony Award nominee multiple times. He is a beloved Broadway star and has played iconic roles that have left an indelible mark on the lives of theater audiences lucky enough to see him on stage. On this episode of Little Known Facts, Mr. Burstein shares stories of his time working with theater legends like Stephen Sondheim, Tony Randall, and Bernadette Peters among others. He opens up with Ilana about a cancer scare that changed him forever and together with his wife Rebecca Luker (another Broadway star) he got through that terrifying time and changed his outlook on life. Be inspired and fall in love with this Broadway legend.Danny is a 6-time Tony Award nominee whose 16 Broadway credits include: Fiddler on the Roof (2016 Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards; Tony & Grammy Award nominations); Cabaret (Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award nominations); The Snow Geese; Golden Boy (2013 Tony and Outer Critics Circle nominations); Follies (2012 Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards; Tony, Astaire & Grammy Award nominations); Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown; South Pacific (Outer Critics Circle Award; Tony and Drama Desk nominations); The Drowsy Chaperone (Tony and Ovation Award nominations); Saint Joan; The Seagull; Three Men on a Horse; A Little Hotel on the Side; The Flowering Peach; A Class Act; Titanic and Company. Off-Broadway credits include: Talley’s Folly (Lucille Lortel & Drama League nominations); Mrs. Farnsworth; Psych; All in the Timing; Merrily We Roll Along; Weird Romance and I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. Film/TV includes: Indignation (directed by James Schamus); The Family Fang (directed by Jason Bateman); Blackhat (directed by Michael Mann); Transamerica; Lolly Steinman on “Boardwalk Empire” (directed by Martin Scorsese); “Louie”; “Absolutely Fabulous”; “Elementary”; “Ed”; all the “Law & Order” series; “Hope & Faith;” Deception; Affluenza; American Milkshake; Nor’easter; Construction; The Sounding; etc. In 2014 he made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Frosch in the Jeremy Sams/Douglas Carter Beane production of Die Fledermaus.

Edie Falco, the multi award winning actress, takes Ilana through her life and career in exquisite detail. From her early days waitressing to her early indie films. How she got the role of Carmela on "The Sopranos," the script she originally read for "Nurse Jackie." Ilana and Edie talk about sobriety, adoption, fame, single motherhood, pet psychics, and much more on this fascinating episode of "Little Known Facts."Edie Falco is best known for her roles as Diane Whittlesey on the HBO series "Oz," Carmela Soprano on "The Sopranos," and in the title role of Showtime’s "Nurse Jackie." She has also appeared in the films "Trust," "Reversal of Fortune," "Cop Land," "Random Hearts," "Freedomland," "Sunshine State," "Gods Behaving Badly," and most recently, "The Comedian." She has earned several Emmy, Golden Globe, and SAG awards and is the first female actor to receive the Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Drama. She has appeared on Broadway in "Sideman," "Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune," and "‘night Mother." Falco recently starred in the Manhattan Theatre Club production of "The Madrid," the Web series "Horace and Pete," and will appear in the forthcoming films "Landline" and "Megan Leavey."

Miriam Shor, star of "Hegwig and the Angry Inch" and TV Land's "Younger," describes in hilarious detail the juxtaposition of growing up splitting her time between Detroit, Michigan, and Turin, Italy. Miriam describes the process of creating her role as the gender bending Yitzhak along with the shows creator, John Cameron Mitchell. She goes on to explain the thrill of seeing the rock stars she worshipped in the audience every night. Also discussed in this episode are the joys of raising kids in New York City and shooting a tv show with her college boyfriend's sister, Sutton Foster. Be a fly on the wall as Ilana and Miriam share stories about a life in the theater and the power of staying true to your dreams even when others around you encourage you to give up. Miriam Shor’s Theater Credits include "Sweat," "Scarcity," "Dedication or the Stuff of Dreams," "Maine, Boy," "Book of Days," "Mondo Draama," "Hegwig and the Angry Inch, "Hair,' and "The Wild Party." On television: "Younger,' "High Maintenance," "GCB," "Mildred Pierce," "The Good Wife," "Jessica Jones," "Bored To Death," "Damages, "Swingtown," "My Name Is Earl," and "The West Wing." On film: "Puerto Ricans in Paris," "5 Flights Up," "The Cake Eaters," "Shortbus," "Bedazzled," and "Hedwig and the Angry Inch."

Tony Shalhoub, award-winning star of stage and screen, opens up about the highs and lows of his career, growing up in the Midwest one of ten children, choosing the right material, marriage between actors, fame, and his true love -- the Green Bay Packers.Tony Shalhoub is currently appearing in the Roundabout Theater production of "The Price." He recently completed a successful run in the Atlantic Theater Company production of "The Band's Visit." He was seen in the Lincoln Center productions of "Act One" and "Golden Boy" for which he received Tony nominations. Most well known as the OCD detective Monk for which he earned three Emmy Awards, a SAG, and a Golden Globe Award. Other television credits include "Nurse Jackie," "Too Big To Fail," and "Brain Dead." He also appears in the Amazon pilot "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel." Some of his many film credits include "Big Night," "The Siege," and "Galaxy Guest." He voiced Luigi in both "Cars" and "Cars II." He will be seen in "The Assignment" out later this month.

Judith Light, award-winning actress, takes us through her life story from soap star to sitcom star to Broadway star to "Transparent". Listen as she tells us about her art and her advocacy.Two-time Tony Award and Two-time Emmy Award-winning actress, Judith Light has captivated audiences worldwide since her portrayal as Angela Bower on the popular 80s sitcom "Who's the Boss?". Currently you can see Judith Light starring with Al Pacino in "God Looked Away" at the Pasadena Play House through the middle of March, 2017.She is also currently playing Shelly Pfefferman in Amazon Prime's Golden Globe and Critics Choice Award winning series, “Transparent” (created by Jill Soloway). For this role, she was nominated for an Emmy Award and three consecutive Critics Choice Awards. You may also have seen Judith as Claire Meade on “Ugly Betty” and Judge Liz Donnelly on “Law & Order: SVU” as well as appearances on the TV Land comedy series “The Exes” and TNT's “Dallas”. In 2106, Judith was honored with the Made in New York Award. In Fall 2015, Judith played the roll of Madame Raquin, in Broadways "Therese Raquin" staring with Keira Knightly. In 2014, Judith Light was named the National Ambassador for the 19th KIDS NIGHT OUT ON BROADWAY by the Broadway League. She was also honored with the Women Who Care Award at the 13th Annual UPC of NYC Women Who Care Luncheon. Judith's work doesn't stop there, in addition to acting, she works as a humanitarian and social activist for the LGBT community and the fight against AIDS. She starred as Marie Lombardi on Broadway in "Lombardi". Her performance earned her a 2011 Tony Nomination. She then won back to back Tony Awards for "Other Desert Cities in 2012 and "The Assembled Parties" in 2013.

Reed Birney & Jayne Houdyshell both won Tony Awards for their performances in the Pulitzer Prize winning play, The Humans. This year at BroadwayCon2017, Ilana had the opportunity to interview these two Broadway stars and hear their first hand accounts of creating unforgettable roles in an astonishing masterpiece of a play. Hear how they learned of their Tony nominations, how they prepared for these intense roles eight shows a week and how they learned to say good-bye to what may be the greatest roles of their careers. Listen as these two talents share deep truths about the highs and lows of a long life in the theater on this special episode of Little Known Facts.

Lucas Hedges, the Oscar nominated and award winning actor, opens up about the joys and fears of a career that takes off at such a young age. As a child, Lucas Hedges made his feature film debut as an extra in his father's film Dan in Real Life. He went on to play major roles in Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom, Jason Reitman's Labor Day, Terry Gilliam's The Zero Theorem, Michael Cuesta's Kill the Messenger, Kenneth Lonergan’s Manchester By The Sea, Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird, and Martin McDonagh’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. His received critical acclaim for his role in the play, Yen. He was nominated for over 20 awards for his role in Manchester By The Sea and won multiple awards for his gorgeous work in the film.

Andrew Rannells, Television and Broadway star, takes listeners behind the scenes of Girls on HBO, Hamilton on Broadway, and how he got from Omaha to New York City.Andrew Rannells plays Elijah on the hit HBO series, Girls. He is also known for his work as Elder Price in the 2011 Broadway musical The Book of Mormon, which earned him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical. As a featured soloist on the musical's Original Broadway Cast Recording, he won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. His other Broadway credits include Jersey Boys, Hairspray, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Falsettos. He portrayed King George III in Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical Hamilton on Broadway.

Dan Bucatinsky, Emmy Award winner, stars in the new Fox series 24 : Legacy. Listen as Dan takes Ilana behind the scenes of his hit television show and talks about his friendship with Shonda Rhimes, gay parenting, and how he and pal Lisa Kudrow took reality television to new comedy levels. Dan Bucatinsky is an actor, writer, producer best known for his Emmy-winning role as "James Novak" on Scandal. Most recently, he joined the cast of the Fox reboot, 24: Legacy, and appears in the return of Gilmore Girls for Netflix. With business partner Lisa Kudrow, Dan co-starred and executive produced the Emmy-nominated docuseries, Who Do You Think You Are? – and with Dan Savage the inspirational digital series, IT GOT BETTER for LStudio, which premieres its third season on May 24th. He's the author of the book, "Does This Baby Make Me Look Straight?" about his journey into parenthood with his husband, filmmaker Don Roos.

BroadwayCon is the biggest convention worldwide for Broadway fans. It is a one of a kind event where Broadway fans and Broadway's biggest stars come together and celebrate all things Broadway. Ilana and her guests Matt Rodin (host of The Red Carpet Challenge) and Robbie Rozelle (Broadway Records graphic designer & Musical Director for Tony award winning singers) break it all down on this special episode of Little Known Facts with Ilana Levine.

Back by popular demand! Ben Platt, the award winning star of Dear Evan Hansen, returns to the podcast to chat with Ilana about life as the star of this moving musical that is taking the theater world by storm and quickly turning into the run away hit of the Broadway season. Dear Evan Hansen is written by the Oscar winning team from La La Land and directed by the Tony Award winning director, Michael Greif.

Griffin Dunne, Actor, Director, Producer, takes us through the story his life from growing up as part of the Hollywood elite to making his own way as a scrappy young actor in New York City. Griffin's stories include everyone from Martin Scorcese to President Kennedy during this hilarious and candid interview. The conversation covers fame, family, women, ambition, process and more. Dunne's recent feature film credits include "Dallas Buyers Club" starring Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, "Last Night", starring Sam Worthington and Keira Knightley and Allen Hughes' "Broken City" starring Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe. This Fall he can be seen in Daryl Wein's "Consumed", which recently premiered at the LA Film Festival. Dunne's feature film directorial debut was 1997's "Addicted to Love," starring Meg Ryan and Matthew Broderick, which he followed one year later with "Practical Magic" starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. Most recently Mr. Dunne directed a short film with Emma Stone for Peter Farrelly's comedic anthology "Movie 43". On television, Dunne has recently recurred on the Showtime series "House of Lies" playing opposite Don Cheadle and Kristen Bell and the Fox series "Red Band Society" opposite Octavia Spencer. In 2015 he completed a series long arc on the WGN series, MANHATTAN. Currently, he is filming Jill Soloway's new Amazon series I LOVE DICK, starring opposite Kevin Bacon and Kathryn Hahn.

Molly Ringwald, international movie star, gets candid with Ilana about how she has handled a lifetime of fame, growing up with a blind parent ,why she won't let her kids act and more. Molly began her film career at the age of 13 in Paul...

In honor of Thanksgiving and in honor of 30 episodes shared, I wanted to take a moment to say thank you to my friend, the actor John Slattery. John was the first actor to join us in the podcast booth and sit down for an interview when this was just a...

Seth Rudetsky is the afternoon Broadway host of Seth Speaks and Seth's Big Fat Radio Show on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio. He has played piano for over 15 Broadway shows, was Grammy-nominated for his concert CD of Hair and...

Tony-award winning actor Dan Fogler landed a starring role in the much-anticipated Warner Bros. film FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM. This next adventure into J.K. Rowling¹s magical world of witches and wizards will be released Thanksgiving...

DAPHNE RUBIN-VEGA is a two-time Tony and Drama Desk nominee (1996/2004) and recipient of the Theater World, Obie (1996) and Blockbuster (1998) awards. She has been a member of the Labyrinth Theater Company since 1992. Ms....

Michael Urie is the award-winning star of one of the most unexpected theater success stories in years, the brilliant and hilarious Buyer & Cellar. Playing multiple characters – including Barbra Streisand – in this one-man tour de force,...

A two-time Tony award-winning stage actor and instantly recognizable film presence, Matthew Broderick will next be seen on screen in Rules Don’t Apply opposite Warren Beatty, Annette Bening and Lily Collins. He will next star in Look Away alongside...

Talia Balsam has had a fascinating career on stage and in film and television. Some of her TV roles include the new HBO Series - Divorce, Zelda, The Newsroom, Mad Men, The Good Wife, Homeland, Nurse Jackie, Elementary, Treme, K Street, Without A...

JULIE WHITE recently starred opposite Matthew Broderick and Annaleigh Ashford in the Broadway revival of A.R. Gurney’s play “Sylvia” under the direction of Dan Sullivan. White won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play...

Dominic Fumusa is best known for playing "Kevin Peyton" opposite Edie Falco on Showtime's acclaimed show "Nurse Jackie" which ran for seven seasons from 2009-2015. Fumusa's extensive theater experience includes originating roles in the NY premieres of..

Laura Linney is an American actress who works in film, television and theatre. Her film work includes GENIUS directed by Michael Grandage, alongside Colin Firth, Jude Law and Nicole Kidman and Tom Ford’s upcoming NOCTURNAL ANIMALS and THE...

Aasif Mandvi is well known for his work as a correspondent on Comedy Central’s Emmy-winning show, THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART. Most recently, Aasif wrote, produced, and starred in the HBO series, THE BRINK, co-starring Jack Black and Tim...

Kathyrn Erbe is best known for playing Detective Alexandra Eames in LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT... Erbe’s television credits include playing the infamous death row inmate Shirley Bellinger on the acclaimed HBO series “Oz.” She also...

American-born stage and screen actor Elizabeth Marvel will play President-elect Elizabeth Keane on the upcoming sixth season of Showtime’s “Homeland,” which will debut in January 2017. On the big screen, Marvel will appear in the upcoming films...

Dan Bucatinsky is an actor, writer, producer best known for his Emmy-winning role as "James Novak" on Scandal. Most recently, he joined the cast of the Fox reboot, "24: Legacy," and will appear in the return of Gilmore Girls for Netflix. With...

Judy Kuhn has been nominated for four Tony Awards most recently for her starring role in the Tony award winning musical Fun Home. Also on Broadway she starred in the Roundabout’s hit revival of She Loves Me (Tony Nomination), Chess (Tony & Drama...

John Benjamin Hickey recently starred as ‘Frank Winter’ in the critically acclaimed WGN America series Manhattan which ended its run after its 2nd season. Earlier this year, John was back on stage in Peter Parnell’s Dada Woof Papa Hot at Lincoln..

Emmy and Tony Award winning actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth’s career spans film, television, voiceover and stage. In 2015, Chenoweth received a coveted star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2009, she received an Emmy Award for Best Supporting...

Reed Birney just won Tony Award for his role as Erik in Stephen Karam's play, THE HUMANS, at The Helen Hayes Theater in New York. Last season, Reed Birney appeared in New York Halley Feiffer's I'M GONNA PRAY FOR YOU SO HARD (Outer Critics Circle,...

BEN PLATT originated the title role in Dear Evan Hansen to critical acclaim (Obie Award, Outer Critics Circle and Drama League nominations) and will reprise his performance on Broadway this Fall. Platt was the original Elder Cunningham in the Chicago production of The Book of Mormon and reprised the role on Broadway (dir. Trey Parker and Casey Nicholaw). Film: Benji Applebaum in Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2, Ricki and the Flash (dir. Jonathan Demme), Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (dir. Ang Lee), Drunk Parents (dir. Fred Wolf). ŒNational Tours: Caroline, or Change (directed by George C. Wolfe). Regional credits include Dear Evan Hansen (Arena Stage), The Black Suits (Barrington Stage Company), The Power of Duff (dir. Peter DuBois/New York Stage and Film), Dead End (dir. Nicholas Martin/Ahmanson Theatre), The Music Man, Mame, Camelot, and The Sound of Music (dir. Gordon Hunt/Hollywood Bowl).

Anthony Rapp has been acting and singing professionally since he was nine years old. With an extensive list of achievements, Rapp is best known for originating the role of ‘Mark Cohen’ in Jonathan Larson’s Tony Award-winning rock opera,...

Frank DiLella's celebrity interviews, along with his in-depth reporting of the theatrical scene for NY1, have helped make him a trusted friend and confidant within the theater and entertainment communities, as well as one of the most popular...

Constance Shulman originated the role of Annelle in Robert Harling's, Steel Magnolias at the WPA/Lucille Lortel Theater. She was the voice of Patti Mayonnaise on Nickelodeon's animated series, DOUG (also ABC Disney). FILMS: Fried...

Bryan Greenberg is a well known American actor and musician. Fans first came to love him as teenage dad "Jake Jagielski" in the WB hit series One Tree Hill. His fan base continued to grow with his next television series, the ABC drama October Roadin...

BD Wong grew up in San Francisco. He won a Tony Award for his performance in M. Butterfly. He gained notoriety for playing the roles of Dr. George Huang on Law & Order: SVU, Father Ray Mukada on Oz, Dr. John Lee on Awake, Dr. Henry Wu...

Cynthia Ellen Nixon is an American actress, known for her portrayal of Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series Sex and the City for which she won the 2004 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She reprised the role in...

Part 2 of Ilana's conversation with actor John Slattery. Listen in as the star of "Mad Men" and the Oscar-winning film "Spotlight" candidly shares stories about his youth, life on set, and working with the late great Philip...

John Slattery is an American actor and director. He is best known for his role as Roger Sterling in the AMC drama series Mad Men. He has received four Primetime Emmy Award nominations and two Critics' Choice Television Awards for AMC's series Mad Men...